Tenant Times: December 2023

Hello from your Local Influence Network (LIN) Chair

I’m Helen and I’m one of four LIN Chairs and we are here to make sure that all tenants have the opportunity to connect and speak with each other as well as to the District Council Housing Services Team.  We each cover a specific area of the district and, as I have been a tenant for 19 years, now living in Farnsfield, I cover the Sherwood area.  We are all keen to make sure that we support you with having your views heard to make a real difference for you.  We meet with tenants regularly and our meeting diary is available online and I would love to meet as many of you as possible. 

This quarterly update is done in partnership between us and the District Council and it is really important it includes the information you need to know, so if there is anything missing, please let us know and we’ll try to include it next time.

Thank you,

Helen

Helen Douthwaite Sherwood LIN Chair

Get Involved

We want you, our tenants, to feel involved in the decisions we take for your areas. There are several ways to get involved.  Two of these are to attend our Local Influence Network and Community Link Group meetings.  You can do this either in person or via Teams.

Rural – Thursday 11 January, 4pm at The Leys Community Centre, Lowdham.

• Join the Rural meeting online here.

Newark – Thursday 18 January, 6pm at Howes Court Community Centre, Newark.

• Join the Newark meeting online here.

Sherwood – Wednesday 24 January, 5pm at The Circle, Clipstone.

• Join the Sherwood meeting online here.

The next Community Link Group meeting is on Tuesday 23 January, 3.30pm at Cleveland Square.

Cost-of-living, 7 Top Tips to Help You!

1. Keeping warm this winter

For more help and advice, including grants and schemes to help keep your house warmer, visit our website newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/makingyourhomewarmer or call us.

2. Keeping on top of your finances

There are lots of different types of support available depending on your circumstances. Citizens Advice can help you, with drop-in sessions across the district. Find out more at sn-ca.org.uk or by calling them on 01636 233265.

3. Are you getting all the money you’re eligible for?

We’ve put together a list of benefit calculators and websites offering benefits advice at newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/heretohelp or you can speak to your tenancy officer who can point you in the right direction.

4. Getting more from your food budget

Making the best use of our food, helps reduce food waste and enables us to support people with low-cost food when they need it. Generally, you need to be referred to a food bank by an organisation like Citizens Advice, your GP or social worker. You can also speak to your tenancy officer who can help and may be able to provide you with an emergency food parcel or a toiletries pack. Food hubs are also available and open to everyone but may require a small membership fee.  Find out more at newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/foodclubs or by calling us on 01636 650 000.

5. Free to attend cookery classes - Cooking on a Budget!

Every Tuesday 10am – 12.30 pm from the 9 January until 20 February (excluding half-term). Join Steph at these fun interactive cooking sessions to learn new skills and get recipe ideas designed to help your budget go further. Sessions held at Abbey Road Community Centre, Edwinstowe. Book your place by emailing info@attfe.org.uk or calling 01623 441 310.

6. Too good to waste

Fruit, vegetables, bread and pastries… as much as you like for £1! The Social Action Hub, Kirklington Road, Rainworth offers this on selected Fridays between 9am and 11am.  For further information email info@socialactionhub.com or call 01623 490498.

7. Stretching your food budget

Take a look at these apps for more help with stretching your food budget:

1. Social Action Hub
2. Too Good to Go
3. OLIO

Reporting Damp and Mould

We want to help you to keep your home free from damp and mould, and where our officers or engineers spot an issue, they will raise this for you. But we need your help! So if you have an issue with damp and mould in your property, please report it as soon as you can. You can do this by reporting a repair or raising it with your tenancy officer or calling Customer Services on 01636 650 000. We also have lots of advice on how to prevent damp and mould on our website at www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/damp

Reporting a Repair

If you need to report a repair to your home or a communal space, you can use our new online repairs service. It’s quick to do and you don’t need an account.  It allows you to book an appointment for a member of our team to come out and fix the repair at a time that suits you. To report a repair online visit https://myrepair.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk  You can also call to report a repair to us by calling 01636 650 000, during office hours, and pressing the option for repair.

If you have an emergency repair however, you must call us immediately. Emergency repairs can include:

• Having no heating, water or electricity.
• Water leaking on to electrics.
• Not being able to lock the doors or windows.
• Exposed wires or sockets.

If you smell gas call the National Gas emergency number on 0800 111 999. 

Who is my Tenancy Officer?

Our team of tenancy officers are there to help you. They can offer help and guidance with many day-to-day enquiries you might face.  To find your local tenancy officer visit www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/mytenancyofficer

The easiest way to book an appointment or to speak to one our tenancy officers is to call us on 01636 650 000 during normal office hours. You can also email the tenancy officers individually, using the details on our website.

Over the coming issues of this e-newsletter, we’ll be asking each of our tenancy officers to tell us a bit about themselves, to help you to get to know them better.

Let Us Know How We Are Doing

Are we doing a good job or falling below your expectations? Please let us know, as with your feedback, we can make changes and improve our services. You can provide feedback via email, telephone or via an online form.  Find out more at www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/tenantfeedback

If you have a specific complaint, then please let us know so that we can sort it out for you. You can do this online at www.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/customerfeedback

• Make a complaint to us at Newark and Sherwood District Council here
• Make a complaint through the Housing Ombudsman here

Let us know what you think about the information in this e-newsletter and what you would like to see in future editions by emailing getinvolved@newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk.

Our Community Chest Scheme

Have you heard about the Community Chest scheme? Community Chest grants are announced twice a year and are specifically there to help communities like yours.

The scheme gives grants of up to £1,000 and has funded projects as varied as providing tenants with gardening tools to allow them to grow their own vegetables, through to providing a lockable cupboard so a community group’s equipment and supplies can be left securely.

If you are part of a community group that could do with an injection of cash, the Community Chest could help you out.

Doug's Story - a Swift Response from the District Council Team!

We take our responsibility for dealing with repairs seriously, and we have processes in place to make sure they are dealt with as swiftly as possible.

Doug recently had some repairs that were needed for his home, and it was identified that he needed to temporarily move so we could complete them for health and safety reasons. Within one week, we found Doug another property, and removals were organised so he could safely and swiftly move into his new temporary home.

He said: “Although the repairs are structural and not of my doing, the inconvenience of myself and my son having to be rehoused locally has thankfully been fairly stress-free and relatively seamless from start to finish. Thanks to the staff at Newark and Sherwood District Council who took the majority of the stress out of the move for me.”

Within three weeks, Doug was back in his home with all the repairs complete!

If you need to report a repair for your home, you can do so using our new online service: https://myrepair.newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk/

Tenant Engagement Events - Spreading Fun and Cheer!

Our Tenant Engagement team regularly organise events for the local community to enjoy and come together. On Tuesday 5 December, they organised a Christmas get-together at Chatham Court, including Santa in a pink tuk-tuk provided by the Rosie May Foundation. Hot chocolate was enjoyed, faces were painted, reindeer decorations were made, and each child was given a present!

If you have any ideas for future events in your area, please speak to your tenancy officer or email: getinvolved@newark-sherwooddc.gov.uk with your thoughts.

Enjoy a Filling and Hearty Soup Using Your Leftover Turkey This Christmas

After the festivities are all over, and you’re wondering what to do with that left-over turkey, why not try this simple and tasty recipe, provided to you from one of our District Council colleagues, Jenny!

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 4 shallots (very small onion variety) diced
• 2 carrots – small, sliced thinly
• 1 celery stick – sliced thinly
• 1 garlic clove – crushed
• 1.5 litres of chicken stock – made from 2 stock cubes
• 200g of shredded leftover turkey
• 1 pinch of sea salt
• 1 pinch of black pepper
• 3 pieces of fresh thyme
• 50g of small pasta pieces

Instructions

1. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large soup pan and heat. Once hot, add 4 shallots, 1 celery stick, 2 carrots, 2 garlic cloves and cook gently for 10 minutes until softened – these pieces of very finely cooked so will not take long to cook.
2. Add the shredded turkey, chicken stock and pinch of sea salt.
3. Add small pasta pieces and cook on low heat for a further 10-12 minutes.

Recipe tips

• You can leave out the extra salt and use low salt stock if you prefer.
• If you don't have any fresh thyme, then you can use dried instead.
• To add extra flavour, you can cook the shallots, carrots and celery in a mixture of butter and oil.
• If you don't want to add pasta, you can use rice instead.