24 May 2023 @ 6.30 – 8 pm | Sir Ralph Perring Centre
agenda
Hello and welcome!
Welcome to tonight’s meeting and before we start, a quick reminder that Mike Saunders and Fleur McNeil from the CoL Repairs Team will be with us from 6.30 to 7.30 pm only. There will be an additional half hour for residents to discuss further; meeting closes at 8pm.
GLERA and some of our Councillors met with Mike and Fleur earlier this week to find out more about the recent software update, the challenges they are facing, and improvements we can hope to see as IT issues are resolved. We also discussed the upcoming repairs contract renewal and heard about the work that Mike is doing, working with experienced consultants, to make sure the bidding process and new contract will result in a better service.
6.30 pm: Open Meeting
Chairs: Tim Godsmark, GLERA Chair and Cllr Ceri Wilkins
Guests: Mike Saunders, Head of Asset Management and Repairs + Maintenance , Fleur Mc Neil, Customer Services Manager
Apologies
Hello to Mike and Fleur who will cover the following items and then answer questions:
- A quick over view of how the process currently works, how repairs are prioritised and what are the timescales for each category and how complaints are managed. See useful handout for more detail.
- Some background on why the system was upgraded, the short-term challenges, how they are being tackled, what improvements we should ultimately see.
- Contract renewal: challenges, improvements, timescale, working with residents.
7.30 pm: Thank you to Mike and Fleur
Resident discussion and feedback to GLERA
8 pm: Close Meeting
some of our issues
In advance of the meeting we gave Mike feedback about some of the issues residents are experiencing with the repairs system and they include:
Poor Communications
- There are reports of contractors attending a property without necessary equipment or information about the repair. A tenant will often have provided photos as part of their report and yet these do not seem to be at hand and have to be taken again before the contractor then leaves.
- This problem is exacerbated when the job is sub-contracted out.
- There are reports of no shows or contractors turning up unannounced or outside of the agreed time frame.
Lack of Urgency / Accountability
- Although a contractor will often turn up fairly quickly after a report is made, the actual repair process seems less than focused (see above).
- Residents have reported their repair number being made invalid, not being properly logged.
Quality
- How often are spot checks undertaken by CoL officers to make sure standards are being met? Many residents report shoddy repairs but don’t feel that these are followed up properly. Once a repair has signed off as complete then it is very difficult for a resident to get their issues taken seriously.
- Are contractors properly aware of the listed status?
Transparency
- Residents are keen to be able to access some kind of app where they can see the status of their repair; make sure all comments have been logged; see next steps and outcomes.
reporting repairs
If you need to report a repair email propertyservices@cityoflondon.gov.uk or call 0800 035 0003
Repairs are allocated a priority from P0 for emergencies to P4 for non-urgent repairs. Depending on the type of repair, an appointment can be made at the time of the call.
