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In this issue: Repairs Handbook update, Neighbourhood Plan progress, final Community Day and more.
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Your voice can help shape housing services across St Albans.
We’re inviting more tenants and leaseholders to join our Tenant & Leaseholder Forum — a friendly, committed group working with the Council to improve how we deliver repairs, tackle local issues, and communicate with residents.
Can you spare just 1 hour 30 minutes a month to make a difference?
Why join?
✅ Influence key services like repairs, complaints, and estate standards
✅ Speak directly with Council staff and decision-makers
✅ Take part in surveys, inspections, and mystery shopping
✅ Receive support, training, and travel reimbursement
✅ Attend as often or as little as you like
“The Forum has helped me feel more informed and listened to.” – Forum Member, 2025
“Since joining, I’ve noticed a more helpful and polite approach when reporting repairs.” – Forum Member, 2025
You don’t need any experience — just an interest in improving your community and helping shape future housing priorities.
📩 Get involved: Email residentengagement@stalbans.gov.uk or speak to your Housing Officer today.
Your voice matters. Your time makes a difference.
Every tenant and leaseholder has a dedicated housing team — here to help you manage your home and tenancy effectively.
Whether it’s support with rent, reporting repairs, or resolving a neighbourhood issue, your team is only a call or email away.
🟨 Neighbourhood Housing Officers (shown in yellow in the newsletter)
Your first point of contact for:
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Starting or ending your tenancy
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Settling-in visits and tenancy checks
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Tackling anti-social behaviour
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Estate inspections and improvement plans
🟦 Income (Rent) Officers (shown in blue in the newsletter)
Here to help you stay on top of your rent and maintain a secure tenancy:
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Rent payments and balance queries
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Budgeting and payment plans
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Accessing benefits advice
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Preventing or resolving arrears early
If you need additional support to manage your tenancy or finances, our Tenancy Sustainment Team can help with specialist advice and tailored assistance.
Not sure who your officer is?
Visit MyStAlbans or email housingmanagement@stalbans.gov.uk, and we’ll put you in touch.
Your housing team – clear, consistent, and here to help you manage your tenancy successfully.
The Council insures the structure of your home — but not your personal belongings.
If there’s a fire, flood, or theft, replacing furniture, clothing or appliances would be your responsibility.
We strongly encourage all residents to arrange contents insurance to protect what matters most.
Even a small monthly payment can save significant costs and stress if the unexpected happens.
One option available to tenants is the Crystal Insurance Scheme, provided by Thistle Tenant Risks — a policy designed specifically for people living in social housing.
Please note: This is not an endorsement. The Council does not recommend any specific provider.
Typical cover includes:
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Furniture, electronics and white goods
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Clothing and personal items
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Accidental damage and theft
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Sheds and outbuildings
To find out more:
📞 Call 0345 450 7286
🔍 Visit www.crystal-insurance.co.uk
📄 Or request a paper form from your Housing Officer
Protect your home, protect your peace of mind.
We all share responsibility for keeping communal areas — such as hallways, landings and stairwells — clear and safe.
Items left in shared spaces can block escape routes, slow down emergency services, and increase fire risk. Even small things like shoes, prams or plant pots can make it harder for everyone to leave quickly in an emergency.
To keep everyone safe:
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Please do not store or leave any personal items in communal areas.
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Dispose of bulky waste responsibly or arrange collection where needed.
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Let us know straight away if you spot items left in a shared area.
We understand that space can be limited, and our teams will always discuss individual circumstances sensitively and fairly. Our priority is making sure every building remains safe and accessible for all residents.
If you have questions about fire safety or storage options, please speak to your Housing Officer or emailhousingmanagement@stalbans.gov.uk
A clear landing is a safe landing — thank you for helping keep your building safe.
Our Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Team continues to tackle high-level ASB and support vulnerable residents across the district.
The team includes one Team Leader and three Officers, covering ASB, safeguarding, and domestic abuse cases. Their work focuses on reducing serious nuisance, protecting victims, and promoting safer communities through partnership working with the Police, Housing Officers, and local support agencies.
They are currently managing 24 high-level ASB cases.
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Four properties are under Closure Orders due to drug-related activity and associated ASB, with another application in progress.
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Seven cases are at court for possession; five are expected to lead to eviction and two to Suspended Possession Orders with behaviour conditions.
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Two residents are subject to ASB Civil Injunctions, and one eviction is scheduled for November 2025.
Since June, the team has issued eight Community Protection Warnings, one Community Protection Notice, and three tenancy warnings. They’ve also supported several residents through joint visits and mediation to help resolve neighbour disputes and reduce the need for enforcement.
These actions show the Council’s firm but fair approach — combining proportionate enforcement with early intervention to keep neighbourhoods safe, supportive, and respectful for everyone.
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Join us for our final Community Day of the year on Thursday 20 November 2025, from 3–6pm at the Hilldyke Community Centre, 17 Hill Dyke Road, Wheathampstead, AL4 8TU.
All local residents are welcome – drop by, meet your Housing Team, get support from local services, and enjoy free activities for all ages.
👋 What to Expect
✔️ Speak with your Housing Officer and Council Housing Team
✔️ Get advice from Citizens Advice on money, benefits and legal matters
✔️ Chat with the Police and Fire Service about safety and local concerns
✔️ Connect with Social Services and community charities
✔️ Children’s outdoor games and activities with Playing Out
🎁 Free raffle on the day – complete a quick entry form at the event for your chance to win!
🍭 Free goodie bags – while stocks last
📩 Questions?
Email residentengagement@stalbans.gov.uk for more details.
Don’t miss our final Community Day of 2025 — we’d love to see you there!
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is gradually moving people from older ‘legacy benefits’ to Universal Credit (UC).
If you receive Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Housing Benefit, Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit, you will be contacted when it’s time to move.
You don’t need to claim UC until you receive a migration notice. This letter will tell you when to apply and how long you have — usually three months and one day. It’s important to claim within this time to protect your payments and avoid losing money.
If you currently receive Housing Benefit, please claim UC before your deadline to avoid rent arrears or a gap in housing cost payments. Once you’ve moved to UC, the housing element is usually paid directly to you, unless you ask for it to go straight to your landlord.
If you have complex needs or find the online claim difficult, help is available:
📞 Call the UC Managed Migration helpline on 0800 169 0328
🤝 Speak to Citizens Advice – Help to Claim
🏠 Contact your Housing or Tenancy Sustainment Officer for local support
Our Tenancy Sustainment Team is here to help residents manage this change confidently and prevent financial stress.
📩 Email tenancysustainment@stalbans.gov.uk if you receive a migration notice or need support with your claim.
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We’ve continued to listen to your feedback through surveys, community events and the Tenant & Leaseholder Forum — and we’ve used your ideas to make more improvements that matter to you.
📘 You said:
“It’s hard to know which repairs the Council covers and what tenants are responsible for.”
✅ We did:
Forum members helped shape the new Repairs Handbook, which sets out who does what, how to report repairs and what to expect from contractors. It will be shared with all Forum members before being published later this month.
🏘️ You said:
“Community events are really useful – can you do more of them?”
✅ We did:
We’ve delivered four successful Community Days in Harpenden, Camp, London Colney and Redbourn, with a fifth and final event taking place at Hilldyke Community Centre, Wheathampstead, on Thursday 20 November 2025.
🏘️ You said:
“We want more of a say in how neighbourhood improvements are planned and delivered.”
✅ We did:
We’ve launched a new Neighbourhood Focus Group — made up of local residents — to help shape and track delivery of the Cotlandswick Neighbourhood Improvement Plan. The group meets regularly to review progress, share ideas and keep us accountable for the changes being made.
💡 Keep sharing your views — your feedback continues to shape how we improve our housing services.
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Our Tenant and Leaseholder Forum has helped shape the new Repairs Handbook, making it clearer, easier to use and more practical for residents.
After reviewing an early draft, Forum members shared detailed feedback on layout, tone and content. Their ideas have made a real difference — from simplifying the structure and numbering to improving summaries and clarifying tenant responsibilities. Each section now includes clear headings, bullet points and tip boxes to make information easier to find.
Resident Engagement Officer Dan Eyre said:
“The Forum’s feedback has been brilliant. The new handbook feels much clearer and more user-friendly, thanks to the tenants and leaseholders who took the time to share their views.”
The final version will be shared with all Forum members ahead of publication at the end of October.
Did you know that one in four repair appointments are recorded as “no access” — meaning a contractor attended but couldn’t complete the repair?
We know this doesn’t always mean no one was home. Sometimes calls are missed, appointment times aren’t clear, or there are access or communication issues. Whatever the reason, each missed visit means delays and extra time before repairs can be completed.
That’s why we’re reviewing the process — with your help. Over the coming months, the Council will contact some residents who’ve recently had a missed appointment to find out what happened, how we communicated, and what could make things work better in future.
Your feedback will help us to:
✅ Understand the main reasons behind missed visits
✅ Improve reminders and appointment flexibility
✅ Reduce wasted trips and speed up repairs for everyone
If you’re contacted, please consider taking part — your insights will directly shape a fairer, more reliable repairs service for all residents.
📩 Already have feedback?
Email residentengagement@stalbans.gov.uk – we’d love to hear from you.
Together, we can make our repairs service smoother, quicker, and easier for everyone.
More and more tenants are managing their Council services online — quickly, securely, and at any time of day — using MyStAlbans.
Whether you want to check your rent balance, report a repair, view your bin collection dates or access your Council Tax account, MyStAlbans brings it all together in one place, available 24/7.
What can tenants do on MyStAlbans?
✅ Report and track housing repairs
✅ Check your rent balance and recent payments
✅ View Council Tax and set up paperless billing
✅ Request bin collections or replacements
✅ Contact your Housing Officer directly
✅ Link your tenancy to see your full account overview
Need help getting started?
Your Housing Officer can guide you through registration or provide a printed step-by-step guide if you prefer. All you’ll need is an email address and your tenancy or Council Tax number.
“It’s easy to use – I checked my rent account and booked a repair in under five minutes.” – Tenant, 2025
Ready to register?
Visit MyStAlbans or ask your Housing Officer for help getting started.
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