Winter 2016/17 TENANTS NEWS Voice of the Wolverhampton Federation of Tenants Associations What s Inside Pages 2 and 3 Lottery project Page 4 Pay to stay Page 5 Near Neighbours project Page 6 City of Sanctuary Page 7 Keeping warm Page 8 What s on / help desk City Advocate Award for Ann Ann Guest MBE, our Chair, received the City Advocate Award from Wolverhampton City Council last year. The award was given by the Council s executive directors for her outstanding contribution. She was recognised for the work she does to support older people to live independent lives in the community. She was presented with the award at the Grand Theatre by the leader of the Council, Councillor Roger Lawrence. We only recently found out about this, well done Ann!!
Bringing communities together We have held another event under our project Bringing communities together. This project is funded by the BIG Lottery Awards for All Programme. The event was held on Wednesday 23rd November 2016 at the TLC College on Dunstall Road. It was an opportunity to bring together new migrants and tenants within the City so that they may better understand the problems that people from different cultures face. We are looking to encourage people to take a greater pride in their areas and to become more active members within their communities. The event was facilitated by the TLC College and the Community Action and Training Service. We were delighted at the attendance as we had about 40 new migrants from all nationalities. We looked at people s experiences how they came to Wolverhampton, the reasons why they left their homelands, and how they have found living in Wolverhampton. We talked about the differences in culture over here and also between different communities. We looked at the positives and some of the difficulties that people faced when they moved to Wolverhampton. Peoples experiences were different. Some felt it was harder to get jobs over here and also to access education. Others said they found obtaining housing was difficult but that education was more accessibly than elsewhere in particular for women. They also said there was more freedom for women here. Some of the positives about Wolverhampton were cheap shopping, people friendly, cheap housing, good bus services and good schools. The feedback was excellent and we are looking to hold another session. Page 2
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Pay to stay We are delighted to announce that the Government has had a rethink about Pay to Stay and has decided not to make it compulsory for Council tenants. Under the Housing and Planning Act 2016 social housing tenants were to face rent increases once their household income rose above 31,000 per annum ( 40,000 per annum in London). The policy was to be introduced from April 2017. Also Councils were to pay any additional income to the Treasury. It is good to see that they sometimes do listen!! You will recall that we have been down to Westminster on several occasions to express concerns over the Act along with tenants from across the country. However Pay to stay will still be voluntary for Councils and Housing Associations. Also the Right to Buy for Housing Association tenants is still going ahead but is being delayed until at least 2018 and we also hear that the selling of higher value Council homes is to be delayed. This is where Council homes (higher value assets) becoming void are to be sold in order to finance the discounts for the Right to Buy for Housing Association tenants. Basically Councils will face a financial levy equivalent to the cost of their high value assets becoming void. So they will then either have to sell the properties to raise the monies or find monies from elsewhere. Also the introduction of Flexible tenancies is, we hear, still going ahead from April 2017. Flexible tenancies will see new tenants being offered tenancies from between 2 to 10 years and there will be a review of the tenancy after 5 years. It will not initially affect existing tenants and there will be extensions for new tenants who are disabled or who have children. It looks like flexible tenancies will eventually mark the end of secure lifetime tenancies and we believe that this will destroy settled communities. There will also be no incentive for tenants to take pride in their homes. Councils are being forced to introduce this type of tenancy. We will keep you informed of further developments. Federation General Meetings 2017 No meeting in January Monday 20th February 2017 Monday 20th March 2017 Monday 10th April 2017 Monday 15th May 2017 (AGM) Monday 19th June 2017 Monday 17h July 2017 No meeting in August Monday 18th September 2017 Monday 16th October 2017 Monday 20th November 2017 No meeting in December All meetings will start at 7.00 pm and finish at 8.45 pm and will take place at Coven Lodge, Spring Valley, off the Cannock Road (WV10 9AX) unless we notify you otherwise. Page 4
Near Neighbours Project We have again obtained funding from Near Neighbours to carry out a project entitled Having a voice. The project is taking place between January and March 2017 and will be based in the Heath Town area. It will be overseen by a panel of tenants. Near Neighbours is a charity set up to bring people together who are neighbours in communities that are religiously and ethnically diverse, so that they can get to know each other better, build relationships of trust and collaborate together on initiatives that improve the local community that they live in. Near Neighbours is funded by the Department for Communities and Local Government and the grant programme is being administered by the Church Urban Fund. The project will provide for capacity building and upskilling sessions for people to have a voice and so influence the services that they receive and to improve the environment within which they live. Have you any outstanding issues - that you haven t been able to get resolved at a local level? We meet with Wolverhampton Homes on a regular basis and we will be happy to flag up any issues that you, our members, have not been able to get resolved with officers at a local level. We have to stress that you must first try and resolve matters with your local housing officers, but if this has not been possible, please get in touch and we will see what we can do to help. We are also happy to act on behalf of Housing Association tenants in the same way. Contact Lal on 01902 55 6816 or email WFTA@live.co.uk Facebook Page We now have a Facebook page where you can view our latest updates, and links to our website. If you use Facebook, why not like our page on http://www.facebook.com/ pages/wolverhampton-federationof-tenants-associations Page 5
City of Sanctuary On the evening of Thursday 22nd September 2016 organisations and individuals from across the City came to together in the Council Chamber at the Wolverhampton City Council to pledge support in order to make Wolverhampton a City of Sanctuary. A City of Sanctuary is a place that is committed to welcoming and including people who are seeking sanctuary a safe place within which to live. Alvine Dongmo-Noumey, who as well as being the founder of Alzec Vision that was formerly known as the Migrant Empowerment Group, is chair of the movement. On the night she spoke about how she fled persecution in Cameroon and finally came to live in Wolverhampton. Alzec Vision works to help individuals and families in the local area and to highlight the issues faced by migrants. The Council has since passed a resolution supporting Wolverhampton as a City of Sanctuary. As such it : Seeks to help and support asylum seekers and refugees in and around Wolverhampton Has made a commitment to becoming a place of welcome and safety Will publicise and celebrate the contribution of asylum seekers and refugees to their local communities and will challenge hostility and discrimination against them. Membership of the City of Sanctuary includes current and former asylum seekers, agencies working with asylum seekers and refugees, and representatives of local community and faith organisations and individuals supporting the aims of the City of Sanctuary. There are 80 towns and cities of Sanctuary in Britain and Ireland. To find out more go to http://wolverhamptoncityofsanctuary.org/ Alvine is pictured above at the event on the 22nd Sept with John Catley the secretary of Wolverhampton City of Sanctuary. Funding Groups looking for funding are advised to register with the Wolverhampton Voluntary Sector Council (WVSC). It has a funding data base and it issues regular notifications on current funding regimes. Their tel no is 01902 773761. We at the Fed are also happy to help and advise where we can. Contact Lal on 01902 55 6816 or at WFTA@live.co.uk Page 6
Top tips for keeping warm in Winter Keep your home warm and energy efficient: Heat your home as best as you can. Ideally keep your thermostat at 18 degrees centigrade or 65 fahrenheit during the day. You may prefer your living room slightly warmer. However if you can t afford to heat all rooms that you use, heat the living room during the day and your bedroom before you go to bed. See below for practical and financial advice and help. You may wish to compare and switch energy supplier go to www.goenergyshopping.co.uk/tenants Get cavity wall insulation and loft insulation see below useful contacts for more info Wear lots of layers of clothing Keep windows closed at night Use radiator foil to maximise heat and don t block radiators with curtains or furniture Block drafts, shut doors and close your curtains at dusk Use a hot water bottle Eat regular meals and have hot drinks Keep active in your home if you can (try not to sit still for too long), even moderate exercise brings health benefits You may be able to claim financial and practical help with heating your home. Grants include the Winter Fuel Payment and the Cold Weather Payment You could get between 100 and 300 tax free to help pay your heating bills if you were born before 5th May 1953. This is known as the Winter Fuel Payment. You should get it automatically if you get a state pension or another social security benefit (not housing benefit, Council tax reduction, child benefit or Universal Credit). A Cold Weather Payment helps people on low incomes heat their homes when it is particularly cold. If eligible you will receive 25 for each week that the average temperature in your area falls to zero degrees celsius or lower for 7 consecutive days between November and March or is forecast to do so. You could be eligible if you have a child under 5 years or you receive one of the following (depending on your circumstances) income support, pension credit, income based job seekers allowance, income related employment and support allowance or Universal Credit. There are grants, benefits and sources of advice available to help make your home more energy efficient and to improve your heating or to help with bills. Useful contacts: Energy Saving Advice Service 03001231234, Citizens advice consumer service 03454040506 or go to your local CAB Go to www.gov.uk for advice on warm home discounts, winter fuel payments and cold weather payments. Age UK www.ageuk.org.uk Information for disabled people and their families go to www.scope.org.uk or www.scope.org.uk/deal Page 7
WHAT S ON - dates for your diary These dates were correct at time of print but may be subject to change 10th February 2017 at 9.30 am 20th February 2017 at 7.00 pm 20th March 2017 at 7.00 pm 7th April 2017 at 9.30 am Wolverhampton Homes Board Meeting Hickman Avenue Federation Meeting Coven Lodge, Spring Valley Federation Meeting Coven Lodge, Spring Valley Wolverhampton Homes Board Meeting Hickman Avenue HELP DESK Do you have any particular problems on your estate or do you need any advice, support or practical help with running your tenants group or would you like help to set up a new group in your area or would you like to become a member of the Fed (we have group membership, individual membership and we have associate membership)...then contact the Federation at Ellerton House, Ellerton Walk, Wolverhampton, WV10 0UG or telephone 01902 55 6816 or e-mail WFTA@live.co.uk or for advice & information contact our web site at www.wfta.org.uk