Council Home Improvements Tailored To Tenants’ Needs

As well as having their homes transformed, tenants in the Caerphilly county borough are also benefitting from improvements which have been tailored to meet their specific needs. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Caerphilly County Borough Council’s £200 million Welsh Housing Quality Standard (WHQS) programme will see all council owned homes in the county borough brought up to Welsh Government set standards by 2020. One element of the WHQS is to ensure homes meet the specific needs of individual households. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

One tenant whose home has been improved to meet his needs is Mr Royston Daddow from Abertridwr, Caerphilly. Mr Daddow’s home benefited from a brand new fitted kitchen and bathroom as part of the WHQS programme of internal works. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Before any works began on his property, Mr Daddow was assessed by an Occupational Therapist from the council’s WHQS team who recommended a walk in shower be fitted to help with some mobility issues he had been experiencing. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Mr Daddow said “I no longer have a bath as I was having difficulty getting in and out. I now have a walk in shower which has been adapted for my needs, which is perfect for me. I am really pleased with the bathroom.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

He added “The team who carried out the work here were marvellous; they always made sure they worked around my needs. They were all so clean and tidy, there wasn’t a worker who didn’t clean up after themselves. They covered all my flooring for me so there was no mess. Now that all the work has been completed I feel like I’ve booked myself into a 4* hotel, its fantastic!” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The work was carried out by Contract Services; one of the contractors delivering internal WHQS works on behalf of the council. The council’s in-house workforce is also delivering a large proportion of the programme and have also received high levels of customer satisfaction. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Cllr David Poole, the council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing, commented “Through having its own dedicated Occupational Therapists, the council’s WHQS team is able to effectively ensure the needs of individual tenants are met. A significant number of tenants have benefited from this approach, as in the case of Mr Daddow. It’s really pleasing to hear that as well as ensuring improvements are planned to meet tenants’ needs, contractors are also making sure those needs continue to be met whilst works are taking place.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​