Achieving Value for Money is a key aim at North Lincolnshire Homes, ensuring that tenants get value for money for the rents paid, the service standards we are committed to delivering to our tenants are:
- We will ensure our services are reviewed using best value principles.
- We will benchmark and compare our services and costs with the best performing social house providers.
- We will use joint procurement of services where this will provide efficiency, savings or quality improvements.
- We will provide a register to record our efficiency savings during the year.
- We will ensure all our efficiency savings are redirected and ploughed back into service delivery as we are a non profit making company
In our first year of measuring Value For Money and savings achieved - North Lincolnshire Homes saved approximately £800,000 between April 2008 and March 2009, and at the same time improved the quality of services provided; these savings were achieved by many different initiatives going on at North Lincolnshire Homes such as:
- The new decoration grant scheme improved the service and choice provided to tenants by increasing the amount of retailer’s tenants could purchase decorating materials from one to seven in nine locations around North Lincolnshire and also allowing the decoration grant to be used for professional decoration services.
- Moving the staff bulletin from a printed publication to an electronic version which has saved £1,152 per year in print costs and is also better for the environment.
- North Lincolnshire Homes changed the standard boilers used on the improvement works programme saving £6,344 per year and also provided tenants with a more fuel efficient boiler which has an ‘A’ energy rating.
These are just a few examples of what we have achieved so far.
There is still much work to be done and this year we are confident about saving around one million pounds, whilst at the same time improving the services provided to the tenants. A few large Value for Money projects are taking place including:
- The Repairs and Maintenance service review
- A new Housing ICT (Information, Communication and Technology) System at North Lincolnshire Homes
- Customer Access Review
- Grounds Maintenance Contract
There are many smaller projects that are taking place throughout North Lincolnshire Homes to improve the services delivered to tenants.
We want you, the tenant, to help us identify potential areas where money could be saved and/or the quality of service improved. Every bit of saving and/or improvement in quality of service delivery counts as the money saved goes to further improve the services provided. These ideas don’t have to save millions or change a service completely small ideas count too. It’s all about enhancing our tenants lives and making the rent money go further to create our vision of:
Better Homes, Stronger Communities
If you have any ideas about how we can achieve our aim of providing tenants better value for money on the rent paid then please submit your ideas by clicking here.