The magazine for Harrow Council’s tenants and leaseholders

Tenants Survey
have your say
Decent Homes
FAQs
Focus On
estate
environment
SUMMER 2008
 2 HOMING IN
Gwyneth Allen
Divisional Director Adults
and Housing Services
Welcome to a bumper edition
of Homing In!
The theme of this issue is the estate
environment. Over the past year we have
invested a lot of time and effort in
listening to your views and making often
small changes to your estate that have
made big differences – a new play area
on Grange Farm Estate; new fencing at
Stonegrove – read all about what’s been
achieved and the plans we have for the
coming year in the centre pages.
Looking back over the past year we
have been working hard to deliver good
services to you and have improved our
performance in key areas including rent
collection, getting void properties let
quickly and getting day-to-day repairs
done more quickly. We have received
many letters of praise about Kier and
where we have received complaints we
have worked hard with Kier to sort out
the problems by making changes to the
way we deliver our services.
A new financial year brings changes
to our Resident Services team, as it
evolves into new specialist teams able
to deal with your queries or problems.
This will help to improve our customer
service further and deal with your issues
in a timely and efficient way.
I remind you again of the importance
of paying your rent on time. Are you
claiming all the benefits you are entitled
to? Phone your rent recovery team for
advice and assistance.
I’d like to say farewell to Councillor
Camilla Bath, who has stepped down as
Portfolio Holder for Housing, and
welcome Councillor Barry Macleod-
Cullinane as our new Portfolio Holder for
Adults and Housing, who along with his
Cabinet assistants, Councillors Jean
Lammiman and Yogesh Teli, will be
making sure you receive good quality
housing services.
Update on changes to
the Housing Service
A year-long review of Resident Services is
now complete.
The review looked at how the landlord
service is organised to provide the best
possible service to you. It considered the
many and varied views of residents
expressed through either customer
satisfaction surveys, complaints or
informally at evening meetings etc.
What has been coming through loud
and clear is the need to provide improved
telephone services, access to housing
staff and a customer friendly and timely
response to issues raised.
Taking these views into account the
service has been rearranged into 4
Rent First!
Are you finding it difficult to pay your rent on time?
Do you want to avoid legal action and
possibly eviction by getting help?
Harrow Council is working in
partnership with Harrow CAB to provide
tenants with access to independent
money advice. So, if you have debts
affecting your ability to pay we can
arrange for an advisor to help in the
following ways:
• Ensure you have maximised your
income;
• Check that you are claiming all the
welfare benefits you are entitled;
Anti-Social tenant evicted
The Council has successfully evicted a
tenant in Jordan Close because of anti-
social behaviour and rent arrears.
We had received numerous
complaints from local residents about the
tenant causing unacceptable levels of
anti-social behaviour including keeping
dangerous dogs at the property.
After obtaining a Possession Order
from Watford County Court in March
2007 to evict the tenant, the eviction was
finally secured in March 2008 after legal
proceedings and appeals by the tenant.
Tell us what you think call 020 8424 1717
specific service areas, providing a
more focused and specialist approach.
These are:
• Anti social behaviour team;
• Rent recovery team;
• Tenancy management team; and
• Community and investment team.
To ensure that we work more efficiently
and effectively in managing our services
we are also investing in new computer
systems.
For information about who your
housing officer is, visit our website at
www.harrow.gov.uk/housingofficer
• Help you to prepare a financial
statement; and
• Negotiation of sustainable repayments
to your creditors.
If you think this service can help
you, contact your Housing Officer on
0208 424 1129/1173/1125 to arrange
a referral for a dedicated appointment.
There are some things you can put
off for another day…Paying your rent
isn’t one of them…Don’t delay pick up
the phone.
We would like to thank the local
residents, whose lives were made a
“living hell”, for all their help and
assistance in securing the eviction.
Harrow Council will not tolerate anti-
social behaviour that blights properties
and affects a whole area. So please
remember you will be in breach of your
tenancy or lease and risk eviction, if you
keep a dog in your flat or maisonette.
If you want to report anti-social
behaviour, please contact the anti-social
behaviour team on 0208-420-9615.

Contacting Access
Harrow about a Repair
Help us to Help You
Have you tried to contact Access
Harrow to report a repair and had
to wait a long time to speak to
an operator?
The Council has reviewed the
numbers of phone calls it gets and at
what times and has identified that really
busy periods are early mornings up to
about 11am and Monday and Tuesday
mornings especially.
Anti-social tenant
evicted
It is upsetting knowing that customers are waiting to be answered and
we can't get to the calls fast enough to meet the demand
If calls were spread out over the day it would enable us to provide a more
efficient service
As an advisor it is frustrating, you want to provide the best service you
can to your customers. It is always very busy in the mornings and less
busy in the afternoons
or email paul.ocallaghan@harrow.gov.uk
We want you get through to us at
Access Harrow on your repairs issues
with as little delay as possible. By
calling later in the morning or during the
afternoon, we should be able to answer
your call more quickly, and get on with
dealing with your repair. Our telephone
number for repairs is 0208 424 1475;
alternatively email Access Harrow at
housing@harrow.gov.uk
HOMING IN 3
Cllr Barry Macleod-
Cullinane
Adult Services and
Housing Portfolio Holder
I would like to take this opportunity to
introduce myself to you as your new
Portfolio Holder for Adults and Housing
Services. Over the coming weeks and
months I will be getting to know more
about how we provide services to you
and what the issues are, so that we can
make improvements. I will be working
closely with my two Cabinet Assistants
on this.
The focus of this edition is the estate
environment. For the many of you living
on estates across the borough, you will
have noticed some of the good work that
has been done to help make your estate
a better and safer place to live, such as
improving parking and garages, play
areas and fencing. More work is
programmed over the coming year so if
your estate has a Tenants and Residents
Association (TRA) and you think there are
improvements to be made, contact either
your TRA or HFTRA with your idea. If you
are not part of a TRA talk to your
Housing Officer who will ensure that you
are consulted about any changes
proposed. An exciting project that is just
starting is the regeneration of Mill Farm
Close estate. Officers are working with
residents of the estate to select a
housing association partner. We will
keep you informed of our progress in
improving the estate for those residents.
A big issue for us in Harrow is that we
have nearly 1,300 families living in
overcrowded conditions whilst waiting for
a suitable home to become available,
whilst we also have people struggling to
live on their own in large houses. This
year we have some dedicated funding to
help people to ‘downsize’. See page 10
for more details. You can contact me c/o
Room 102 at the Civic Centre, by phone
on 020-8424-1852 or by email to
barry@belmont.bz
 4 HOMING IN
Keep safe
with regular
Gas Safety Checks
At least 20 people die each year from
carbon monoxide poisoning as a result of
faulty gas fires, central heating boilers,
cookers and other appliances.
We want to keep you safe.
If you smell gas, or suspect there is
a gas escape, you should immediately do
the following:
• Open all doors and windows.
• Shut off the gas supply at the meter
control valve (if you know where it is).
If gas continues to escape call
National Grid on the Gas Emergency
Freephone Number 0800 111 999.
What does the Council need to do?
• Make sure that Council installed
appliances are maintained and that
they are checked for safety within
a 12 month interval;
• Keep a record of the safety checks for
at least two years;
• Issue tenants with the latest
certificate.
What do you need to do?
• Give our partner, Kier Group Harrow,
access to carry out the gas safety
checks;
• Keep the appointment but if you can’t
please contact Kier on 0208 861
9786 to rearrange;
• If you own the appliance, you are
responsible for its maintenance and for
its safety checks by a CORGI
registered gas engineer;
• For leaseholders – Harrow Council has
no legal obligation to undertake gas
safety checks to gas appliances for
leasehold properties so you need to
make your own arrangements with a
CORGI registered gas engineer.
What happens if you don’t give access?
If you do not give access to us to
complete the check we will take legal
steps to gain access. If we incur any costs
as a result of this we will recharge you.
For more information about gas safety
checks contact your Housing Officer or
see our website at www.harrow.gov.uk.
New repair priorities
introduced
Following consultation with tenants in
the last edition of Homing In, new repair
priorities have been introduced from New priorities
01 April 2008.
In the last edition of Homing In we Priority 1 emergency 24 hours
asked all tenants to tell us what they
thought about the new repair priorities
Priority 2 3 days
we had proposed. 91% of those who
responded thought the new priorities Priority 3 7 days
were a good idea.
Thank you to everyone who took the Priority 4 routine 28 days
time to respond and for all the
additional comments, including:
“I’m happy with my repairs.
Thanks to the new priorities,
Whenever I can call them they
since 01 April we have seen a
come as soon as possible and marked decrease in the amount of
they do a good job. I hope it will time taken to complete a non-urgent
continue the same in the future.” repair, from 16.05 days on average
during 2007/08 to 6.73 days on
“Timescale is important but the average from 15 April to end June
quality of the work is vital.” 2008. It will take longer to assess
the impact on the number of
emergency and urgent repairs
“An urgent repair might be urgent
ordered. We will repor t back in a
to me but not urgent to you. future edition.
How do I know when I phone up More detailed information will also
whether I am reporting an urgent feature in the revised tenant handbook
repair or a non-urgent repair?” and on the website shor tly.
Feedback on repair priorities
4% 5%
A good idea
A bad idea
No opinion
91%
Garages to let
Garages are currently available to let across the borough. For more information
and prices, contact Doreen Gibbons on 020-8424-1363 or email at
Doreen.gibbons@harrow.gov.uk

Decent Homes
Programme
What does this
mean for you?
As the decent homes work proceeds,
tenants often have many questions.
Here is a selection of some of the most
frequently asked questions. These and
answers to many other questions will
be published on the Council’s web site
at www.harrow.gov.uk.
How do I know if my home is
on the decent homes programme?
You can contact Access Harrow
(Telephone: 020 8424 1475)
who have details of the programme.
How do I know what works are
to be done?
If your home is on the 2008/09
programme, you should have received
a letter asking you to contact a
company called ‘Ridge’ to agree an
appointment for a survey. Once the
Council has considered the survey
results, it will update the provisional
programme held by Access Harrow to
show the final programme for your
home. You will also receive a letter
telling you what works are to be done.
How do I find out when the works
will start?
Kier, the Council’s contractor doing
the works, will schedule when they will
be doing the work. Details of who to
contact in Kier will be contained in the
letter you receive from the Council
telling you what works are to be done.
I have aids and adaptations fitted in
my home. Will these be replaced?
Yes, these will be replaced on a like-
for-like basis.
HOMING IN 5
Housing Capital
Programme
This year the Council is planning to
undertake almost £16m worth of works
to Council homes and estates.
This ambitious programme includes
proposals to bring all the Council’s
homes up to the decent homes standard
by 31 March 2009 (rather than by the
government deadline of 31 March 2010).
Other works include proposals to
undertake, in consultation with local
I feel that I need to have some communities in varying locations, at
aids and adaptations fitted. Can least £800,000 of estate improvements.
these be included in the decent
The intended works include new fencing
homes works?
If an Occupational Therapist and security measures, upgrading
recommends aids and adaptations porches, resurfacing roads, re-roofing
these will be incorporated into any sheds, demolishing garage areas,
works being undertaken as part replacing guttering, new furbishing play
of the decent homes programme.
areas and improving lighting to name but
However, we regret we cannot fast-
track the Occupational Therapist’s a few of the intended projects.
assessment. You will need to Other borough-wide projects include
apply to Adult Services, through upgrading lifts and warden call system in
the normal procedures for an
some sheltered blocks: an ongoing
assessment. Unfortunately, there
is a waiting list for assessments. programme of digital aerial installations:
We will delay doing the decent homes drainage works and some community
works until after your needs have centre refurbishments.
been assessed. An alternative maybe Details of the full capital programme
to consider a transfer to a more
will be published on the Council’s website.
suitable property.
I’ve fitted a separate shower
cubicle and only need the wash
hand basin and WC replaced.
Can this be agreed?
The test is if the bathroom is ‘decent’
even if replaced by you at your own
expense. A shower cubicle (if of an
appropriate standard) is an acceptable
alternative to a bath. If the shower
cubicle is decent but the wash hand
basin and WC are not, these items
will be replaced.
Can I supply my own tiles?
Yes, subject to the type of tiles
provided not being a type that will
cause more work or greater cost than
the ones the Council would have
provided e.g. mosaic tiles
 6 HOMING IN

Focus on.............
ESTATES GET A DEEP CLEAN
All Council blocks are to get a ‘deep clean’
during the Autumn of this year.
In the past residents have been
expected to clean the internal areas of
their blocks. A recent review highlighted
our buildings are in urgent need of
cleansing. Thanks to savings made
from elsewhere in the housing
budget caretaker service operatives
will be able to carry out this much
needed work.
A regular cleaning programme has
also been developed and will continue
through the year. The programme has
been given to all Tenant and Resident
Associations (TRAs) and they will also be
posted on estate notice boards. For
more information or to find out when
your block is due to be cleaned, contact
either your TRA or Estate Services on
020-8420-9409 or email
New play area
housingestatesservices@harrow.gov.uk.

IMPROVEMENTS TO GROUNDS
MAINTENANCE UNDERWAY
Residents will shortly see improvements
to our grounds maintenance service
across the borough.
The service started slowly this year
and an improvement plan has now been
swings into action
New equipment for younger children has been installed in the Grange Farm
Close play area.
Until early February, the play area had become neglected, with only one set
of dilapidated swings intact. Now the area has been given a new lease of life,
thanks to money secured by the Council from the Big Lottery Fund.
The improvements have delighted residents:

agreed to improve the service, including:

We have waited ten years for this to happen
• Published schedules on estate notice
boards and with TRAs You have made us so happy
• Better ways of dealing with non-delivery My child looks out of the window and wants to play on OUR play area
of the service
This area helps me to amuse myself with basketball, meet other friends
• Closer monitoring through our estate
and make new ones.
services supervisors to ensure the
work is done. The good news does not end here; the Housing Department has managed to
For more information about grounds secure some further funding, to upgrade the area and resur face pathways
maintenance services, see your around the play space and to install some equipment for older children too.
notice board or contact either your
TRA or Estate Services on
020-8420-9409 or email Tell us what you think call 020 8424 1717
housingestateservices@harrow.gov.uk
 HOMING IN 7

estate environment
Garage area gets a
Spruce Up
Northolt Road estate looks better than ever now
garage areas have been improved.
As one of the key minor estates
improvements projects over the
last financial year, the Council
in partnership with Kier has
installed additional lighting,
replaced garage doors and
given them a fresh coat of
paint. The surrounding areas
have also been improved with
the installation of:
• New fencing
• A new bin chamber
• Boxing in of water taps
• New signage and
• New bollards.
In addition, overgrown trees have been pruned and a flowerbed has been rebuilt.
By making the environment cleaner, tidier and more attractive, we’ve noticed a
reduction in graffiti and fly tipping and residents tell us they feel safer walking
through the area.
WHAT’S IN
STORE FOR
2008/2009?
Prevention of anti-social behaviour and
environmental and Health and Safety
improvements remain high on the
agenda for 2008/09.
The programme includes
refurbishment of other play areas on our
estates, installation of more lighting and
more security doors and fences. We are
also hoping to introduce solar panels on
selected blocks to provide power for
communal lighting. Another key project
currently in development is looking at
using mobile cameras to help combat
anti-social behaviour in problem areas
on estates. This will mean that we can
install cameras at a site and monitor
problems from another location.

Estate improvements Many projects will be subject to

consultation with residents on the
estates where works are planned.

continue For more information contact

Estate Services by email to

Estates are now safer thanks to improvements made housingestateservices@harrow.gov.uk

or phone 020-8420-9409.
by the Council over the last year.
Projects included new pathways
and additional low wattage
lighting that have made access
safer and visibility clearer on our
estates. Combatting anti-social
Before behaviour has also been high
on the agenda, with installation
of additional lighting, security
doors and fencing. Bollards
were installed to prevent
blocking of roads and we also
created parking bays for use by
disabled badge holders.
After
For the third year running
Estate Services Supervisors have successfully completed the Minor Estates
Improvement programme on time and within budget and were also able to complete
more projects than originally planned by negotiating cost savings on other schemes.

or email paul.ocallaghan@harrow.gov.uk
 8 HOMING IN

Mill Farm Close poised

ESTATES GET RECYLING!
New recycling bins have been provided
to many of Housing’s estates including
Whitchurch Ave, Northolt Road and
Pinner Grove.
This now means that most of
Harrow housing residents are now able
to recycle in one of the bins situated on
Council estates across the borough.
For further information about recycling
services for flats contact the Council on
0845 225 2600 or email
Publicrealm@harrow.gov.uk
New street lighting
for Harrow
Harrow Council is planning a five-year
programme to renew 19,000
streetlights, bollards and signs
across the borough.
The work, due to start in
Spring 2010, will also affect our
Council housing estates. Resident
consultation will start shortly so look
out for more information in the next
edition of Homing In.
for Regeneration
Residents living on Mill Farm Close
Estate in Pinner have seen exciting
proposals from four Housing
Associations who are currently
competing to be selected as the
Councils preferred par tner to
under take a major regeneration
project on the estate.
Following an options appraisal
and extensive consultation carried
out in 2007 with residents of the
estate, the Council’s Cabinet
agreed proposals to improve and
regenerate the estate using the
preferred option of pursuing a stock
transfer to a housing association.
Over half of Mill Farm Close’s
households came along to find out
about the plans at two estate
events and ask questions directly
to each association. They were able
to look at proposed designs for the
estate, the timetable for the
regeneration and find out about the
management of the estate once it
is transferred.
Information from these events
will be used to suppor t the final
decision making process. Once an
association has been selected,
Cabinet will be asked to approve
this selection at the October
meeting. Fur ther consultation will
then take place with residents and
the association before a tenant
ballot is held in 2009. The transfer
of the estate to a housing
association can only take place
once a majority of tenants vote
“yes” in this formal ballot.
For more information on the
regeneration process at Mill Farm
Close please contact Nick Caprara
(0208 424 1096) or Alison Pegg
(0208 424 1933).

Council Combats
Fraud
Harrow Council has a duty to protect the
public funds it manages. Preventing and
detecting fraud is an important part of
this work. We regularly take part in data
matching exercises to identify fraud and
may use information you provide to us
for this purpose.
We may also share this information
with other bodies responsible for
auditing or administering public funds
for this purpose.

For further information see:

www.harrow.gov.uk/fraud/nfi

Grove Estate
Residents Association
(GERA)
After meetings with interested tenants
and leaseholders and our Resident
Participation Unit, Grove Estate
Residents Association (GERA) was
formed at a general meeting on
23 January 2008. Twelve residents
were voted in to represent the estate
View from the Fed
The Harrow Federation of Tenants and
Residents Associations (HFTRA) has
been busy over the last few months
focusing on diversity issues for tenants
and leaseholders. It is keen to
establish a multicultural tenant forum
and has been working hard with the
Council to find ways of encouraging
tenants from all communities to have
a say in how housing services are
provided.
However the HFTRA is going through
a few changes and will hopefully
emerge stronger and better able to
as a committee. Lisa Budd was elected
Chair and Heena Modi was voted in
as secretary.
If you want to find out more
about GERA then please contact your
Housing Officer.
serve the tenants and leaseholders
across the borough. There will be a new
chairperson, secretary and treasurer for
the association and they are looking to
continue to advocate for their
associations and work as the liaison
between the Council and their tenants.
These changes mean that the
current HFTRA officers may not be the
ones to contact in the near future.
For more information about who your
current HFTRA reps are contact the Fed
office on 020-8420-9685/6 or speak
to your housing officer.
HOMING IN 9
Weald
Tenants &
Residents
Association
(WTRA)
Weald Tenants & Residents Association
(WTRA) is urgently looking for Tenants
and Leaseholders to join their
committee.
We are a ver y active committee,
discussing problems occurring in this
par t of Harrow Weald with
representatives from the Housing
Depar tment, Police and Youth Ser vice.
Meetings are normally held
approximately ever y 6 weeks on a
Wednesday or Thursday evening from
7pm – 9pm and are held, at the
present time, in the Good News
Church, Chicheley Road.
Our next meeting will be on
Wednesday, 22nd October 2008.
If you are interested in joining
us please do come along or call
our Chairman, Paddy Lyne, on
0208 428 5388 for fur ther details.
 10 HOMING IN
New homelessness
strategy agreed
The number of people living in bed and
breakfast and other temporary
accommodation could significantly drop
under new plans unveiled by the Council.
A new action plan to prevent
homelessness and tackle its wider
causes has been drawn up and agreed
by the Council’s Cabinet.
The Homelessness Strategy will roll
out from 2008 for the next 5 years and
sets out the Council’s plans to tackle the
current high demand for housing and to
develop a wide range of support
programmes for those at risk of
homelessness, particularly young and
vulnerable people. Plans include:
• Opening up more opportunities to access
suitable homes within Harrow and also
out of the borough; for example, a
mobility scheme which assists any
household on the housing register to
relocate to an area of their choice;
• Working with landlords to ensure
private-rented accommodation is a
more desirable option, through the
West London LetStart scheme which
provides advice, support and financial
incentives;
• Pursuing a number of other housing
solutions and support packages in
partnership with organisations like the
YMCA, offering, for example,
accommodation and support to young
single homeless people.
The new plans aim to build on the
pioneering achievements of the previous
strategy, such as the Sanctuary Scheme
which allows survivors of domestic
violence to remain in their own home, but
also recognises the increasing
challenges that we face of high demand
for affordable housing relative to the
small Council and housing association
stock, the relatively high cost of housing
in Harrow and a lack of suitable land for
development of new affordable homes.
The strategy is available from
www.harrow.gov.uk
Council improves
2-beds for
underoccupiers
problems from schoolwork suffering to
ill health. In an attempt to address this
problem and encourage tenants who
are currently underoccupying to move,
Harrow has secured government
funding to target improvements to
2-bedroom properties including new
flooring and curtains, new kitchens and
bathrooms, removal costs and a
handyman for moving day.
Are you a Council tenant living in a The Council will never force you to
property that is too big for what you move, but if you answered yes to either
need? Have you ever considered down- question and would be interested
sizing to something more manageable? in moving to one of these properties,
In Harrow, whilst many people are please either contact one of our
living in homes that are too big for their housing options officers on
needs, other families are forced to live 020-8424-1543 for more information.
in overcrowded conditions because of
Alternatively you can register online at
the lack of large properties to rent.
This in turn causes a range of www.locata.org.uk/housingregister.
Leasehold Services
In April we bid farewell to Sally Thompson, our Leasehold Services Manager, who
in her 2½ years with Harrow, achieved a lot both for Harrow and for leaseholders.
We’d now like to introduce our new Leasehold Services Manager, Simidele
Adedeji. Simi is keen for Sally’s good work to continue and her priorities for the
coming year include:
• Continuing to work with and develop the LSG including training on leasehold
legislation and management and conduct of Meetings.
• Improving communication with all Leaseholders including invoicing day-to-day
repairs and an introduction of a 'Plain English' lease
• Ensuring that service charges are invoiced annually in advance and that
charges made are accurate and transparent
• Improving the way we consult with leaseholders and invoice for major works
• Piloting post and Pre- inspections on major works on service of Section 20s.
• Working with the LSG to ensure that all leaseholders have the opportunity to
input into consultations, to improve service provision
• Establishing ward based leaseholder consultation forums regarding major and
Minor works and Anti Social Behaviour to encourage Leaseholders to get more
involved in the management of their various Estates.
The next open meeting of the Leasehold Support Group is likely to take
place in November. Leaseholders will receive details shortly.
 HOMING IN 11

Tenant and A Place by

Leaseholder Survey the Sea
Have your say

This autumn, tenants and leaseholders survey to a random sample of tenants

will be asked their views about the
quality of housing services they receive.
It is important that the Council gets
feedback from residents to show where
we’re doing well and where to target
improvements. To get this information
the Council are commissioning a
research company to carry out a postal
and to all leaseholders.
We want to provide you with the best
value for money services possible, whilst
also ensuring that they are tailored to
meet your needs. So, if you do receive a
survey through the post, please spare
a few minutes to complete it and return
it using the envelope provided. If you have ever thought it would be a
good idea to leave the city and settle in

How did we perform the country or by the sea we might be

able to help!
Seaside and Country Homes have

in 2007/8? over 3000 one bedroom flats and

bungalows in a wide range of areas
across England specifically for older
We’ve made a lot of progress over the past year, including: people wishing to move from London.
• Completing Decent Homes works to 1357 properties. We plan to complete the
programme by April 2009, which is one year ahead of the target set by central So if you are:-
government. • Over 60
• Collecting 97.4% (£20.6m) of all tenants’ rent and arrears owed to us, which is • A Council or housing association
an improvement on the previous year (96.6% in 2006/7). This year, we plan to
tenant
increase this further to 98.5% with our newly structured rent team.
• Reducing the average time it takes us to relet a Council property from 33 days • Want to move to the seaside or
to 23 days. This is a huge improvement and means that we are maximising the country
use of our stock, by providing homes for people in the shortest time possible.
We’re working hard to make improvements in the following areas: Contact one of our Housing Options
• Housing repairs – we want to increase the proportion of urgent repairs we
Officers for more information on
complete within government time limits, and reduce the time it takes us to
complete non-urgent repairs. 020-8424-1543.
• Homelessness – we’re reviewing the way we prevent and manage
homelessness. One of our aims is to reduce the time homeless families have Remember, if you are moving to a
to spend in Bed and Breakfast accommodation. smaller property, we pay you £1,500 for
For more information about housing performance, contact Marzuki Haji on each bedroom you give up and arrange
020-8424-7538 or email marzuki.haji@harrow.gov.uk your removals.
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For a copy of this magazine (in English) in large print, Braille,

or on tape, please call:

Telephone:
020 8424 1717

Textphone:
020 8420 9658
Homing In is printed by Annodata Print Services

It is published by: Housing Services, Harrow Council, PO Box 65, Harrow, HA1 2XG.
Tel: 020 8424 1717, Fax: 020 8424 1610, www.harrow.gov.uk email paul.ocallaghan@harrow.gov.uk