Senior councillors have approved a Repairs and Maintenance Policy which formally provides clarity and accountability for tenants and Hull City Council as their landlord.
Whilst the policy continues existing and established Hull City Council practices and processes reflective of those detailed within the standard Tenancy Agreement, it will be kept under review, with several changes planned in the coming months.
The policy includes the new category of Urgent repairs, which was introduced at the beginning of June.
The Urgent category will complement the existing categories of Emergency repairs (within 24 hours) and Routine repairs (within 28 calendar days of the repair report).
Urgent repairs cover non-emergency repairs that could still cause serious inconvenience or are likely to cause further problems to the property.
Examples include a loss of hot water where no occupant is at risk, minor plumbing issues (such as a leak that can be contained), or minor electrical faults to lighting.
These types of repairs will be completed within 5 working days from the date the repair is reported, and will come with an appointment time and date, as agreed with the tenant upfront.
It’s estimated that the new Urgent category would cover around 6,000 repairs every year, with the majority of them to be completed during a single visit.
Some repairs considered as Emergency under previous guidelines often involved staff attending first to make a repair safe and secure, before arranging a further visit to complete the fix.
The change also means that more repairs can be raised via the myHousing App rather than tenants using the telephone, as Urgent repairs now join Routine repairs in being able to be raised in this way.
Portfolio holder for Housing, Councillor Paul Drake-Davis, said: “This new Repairs and Maintenance Policy builds upon the work the council is already doing to provide safe and warm homes in our welcoming neighbourhoods.”
“But we are boosting things by introducing an Urgent repairs category and providing a definition of a vulnerable tenant, which will help the Council deliver more tailored services.
“We’ve engaged with our Tenants’ Forum on the introduction of the Urgent category, as we recognise that responsive repairs is one of the most important services we provide to our residents.
“We’re committed to our repairs being cost-effective, timely and of a high standard for our tenants and look forward to further improvements to the service and updated policy in due course.
“These revisions will ensure our policy continues to meet tenants’ needs and expectations around vulnerability, as well as first time fix for repairs.
“It also optimises levels of trade operative resource through simple, efficient and smarter processes, and means we’re in line with legislative requirements including Awaab’s Law.”
The introduction of the Repairs and Maintenance Policy for Neighbourhoods & Housing was approved by members of Hull City Council’s Cabinet at a meeting held on Monday 28 July.
