We caught up with Paula Major and Richard Lewis, two of our Area Housing Officers, to let you know about the work they do and their most common queries.
Paula and Richard have been Area Housing Officers for a combined total of 31 years. They both initially joined the team because of their care and desire to help people.
“Area Housing Officers can signpost you to help sustain your Cornwall Housing tenancy, refer welfare or safeguarding issues, and help ensure that the area you live in is clean and cared for. Our role is about the people in our properties and their tenancies, and not the bricks and mortar!”
Initial welcome to your home
“We are often the first face you see when you become one of our tenants, as we will sign you up for your home and hand over your keys. We will support you in your initial introductory tenancy to help you meet all conditions required to be approved for a longer tenancy.”
Ensuring conditions of tenancy are met
“A central part of our job is to ensure you can meet all the conditions of your tenancy. We will support you to achieve and remember your commitments in your home, as one of our tenants.”
Changes to your tenancy
“We always like to know about any changes to your household. This includes new occupiers or babies that need adding to the tenancy, or anyone that moves out so we can keep our records accurate. We will also help if you need to end your tenancy or report a death.”
Home swaps
“If you are looking to move to a new home through an exchange, we can assist you through the process once you have found someone to swap with."
Neighbour disputes
“We are happy to help to resolve issues with neighbours, such as noise nuisances, untidy gardens, drug misuse, and low-level neighbour disputes.”
Safeguarding
“We care about you and your families and want to make sure you are safe and well. A large part of our role is working with multi-agencies, following safeguarding referrals or concerns for our tenants or members of their household. We also attend meetings to help support them and come up with plans to make things better.”
Pet management
“We want to know about any furry or feathery family members you plan to get, as permission is required. We will assess if your property is suitable, and work with you to ensure you know about our pet policy.”
“We are often contacted about issues outside of our control, such as parking and dog fouling. We are able to deal with these queries if they occur on our properties, gardens or communal areas.
However, if the issue does not occur on our land, the best way to resolve it is through Cornwall Council’s Report It website: www.cornwall.gov.uk/report-something/"
Use Cornwall Council's Report It website to report any issues with the following:
The best and quickest way to report a property repair is on the Cornwall Housing website.
Report a repair here.
For emergency repairs call: 0300 1234 161
Please do speak to us if you are unsure who is responsible for the issue.
Email: info@cornwallhousing.org.uk
Telephone: 0300 1234 161
