Coronavirus (COVID-19) update

Key information:

• We want to reassure you that no one will lose their home as a result of financial hardship caused by the virus
• We can offer support on money advice and claiming benefits
• We’re also providing extra support to our most vulnerable and elderly customers
• We’ve got a list of trusted local organisations who can help if you’re self-isolating
• We’re providing over £250k extra investment to help support local community groups and food banks
• We’re only completing emergency repairs until further notice
• We’re completing other services over the phone or email, rather than face to face
• View our full list of Frequently Asked Questions here

Coronavirus: how we’re supporting you

As the impact of coronavirus continues to spread, we’re focusing our efforts where it matters most to you. This includes keeping you safe in your home and being here to offer support and advice about paying your rent, claiming benefits and money advice as we know this is a worrying time and job situations may change. Our priority as always is to keep you and your home safe and we’re advising customers and staff to keep following the latest government advice to protect yourself. This includes letting us know if you’re self-isolating or have been diagnosed.

View our full list of Frequently Asked Questions here.

Worried about paying your rent?

We know that some of you are worried about how you'll pay your rent because of the impact of coronavirus. If you're unwell or can't work because of coronavirus we want to reassure our customers that no one will lose their home as a result of financial hardship caused by the virus. We know you'll do your best to pay your rent but if you're in financial difficulties we're here to help. We can offer support on money advice and claiming benefits so please don’t hesitate to get in touch in the usual way.

Extra support for care and sheltered schemes

We’re also providing extra support to our older customers living in our sheltered and extra care homes, including additional cleaning in communal areas and we’re also starting to make regular phone calls to check in and make sure everything’s okay.

Helping community groups and foodbanks

We know that many of you are having to self-isolate because you’re at high risk because of an underlying health condition or because you have symptoms. If you're self-isolating and need some help, whether it be with food supplies, shopping or a friendly chat, we've put together a list of local organisations who can provide support to you. To support these groups, we’ll be donating £125,000 to help them continue their great work, and £125,000 to local food banks across our operating area. Find out more by visiting the 'our support during the coronavirus outbreak' page.

An update on our repairs service

It remains our top priority to keep you and your home safe and in light of the current guidance to stay at home and only work where absolutely necessary, we’ve made the difficult decision to only run essential services until further notice but we’re still here to provide support and answer any concerns you have by phone or email.

What does this mean for you?

• Only emergency repairs will be carried out. When completing these repairs, we’ve put measures in place to ensure your safety, and the safety of our staff, which we’ll tell you about before your appointment. If you’ve taken the decision to self-isolate, please let us know when reporting a repair. You can find more information here.
• Depending on the repair, we may only be able to make your home safe by putting temporary measures in place. In these circumstances, we’ll return and complete the full repair once the government’s advice changes and we’ll make sure that we won’t leave you without any essential services, particularly our vulnerable customers.
• We'll also be completing our annual gas services closer to the date that they’re due, rather than 10 weeks in advance. We’ll contact you again nearer the date that your gas service certificate expires to arrange to carry out the check. We’ve also taken the decision to cancel our electrical testing and MVHR (mechanical ventilation and heat recovery) servicing for the time being. Please be reassured that we’ve not made this decision lightly. If you are concerned that your boiler or the electrics in your home, please contact us.

Keeping you informed

As government guidance continues to change daily, we’ll continue to provide updates on our services on our website, regular emails, and on our Facebook and Twitter pages. You can also find a full list of Frequently asked questions here.