£200m Programme Transforms Tenants’ Homes

The homes of council tenants in the Caerphilly county borough are continuing to be transformed through a £200 million improvement programme. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Welsh Housing Quality Standard programme (WHQS) will see all council owned homes in the county borough brought up to a specific set of standards by 2020. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

One tenant whose home has undergone a transformation over the past few weeks is Miss Rebecca Jones from Markham. Rebecca’s home benefited from a brand new kitchen, bathroom and electrical rewire. The work was carried out by Keepmoat; one of the contractors delivering the internal WHQS works on behalf of the council. The council’s in-house workforce is also delivering a proportion of the programme. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Miss Jones was very happy with the colour choices offered by the council for refurbishments. She said, “It was great to be given the choice myself rather than the council just coming and putting a standard kitchen and bathroom in. I felt like I was really involved when choosing my new cupboards, worktops and even handles; I’m very happy with the outcome. I’ve also ended up with more cupboard space than I had before which is great. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“Overall the experience was excellent and if I had to do it all over again, I would; it’s made such a big difference to my home. I had a great relationship with the workers who were very accommodating with my two young children and always cleaned up after themselves. My Tenant Liaison Officer, Sherell McLaughlan, was excellent too and really supported me during the work. If I was ever unsure of anything I only had to phone her and she would help”. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The WHQS is a standard set by Welsh Government, which all local authority and housing association homes must meet. The standards include requirements to improve the inside of homes, along with external works and improvements to the wider environment. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Cllr David Poole, the council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing, commented “The council is making a significant investment into the homes of its tenants and it’s great to hear positive stories from people like Miss Jones. As well as helping to transform homes, the council is also committed to ensuring the investment being made into WHQS transforms lives and communities, such as jobs and training opportunities for local people. Keepmoat and the other contractors working with the council on its WHQS programme have all made commitments to help us achieve this through the delivery of a range of community benefits. ” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​