Happy 100th Birthday Rose! - B3 Living

Contact usOur out of hours number has changed – in an emergency call our main number 01992 453 700www.b3living.org.ukemail: enquiry@b3living.org.ukFor all enquiriesTo speak to someone face to faceTelephoneScania House, 17 Amwell Street,Hoddesdon EN11 8TS01992 453 7008.30-5.30pm Monday to Thursday8.30-5pm Friday8.30-5.30pm Monday to Thursday / 8.30-5pm FridayDrop in or make an appointment. You can come tous or we can come to you.Out of hours emergency01992 639 561Follow us on tSmell gas?www.twitter.com/B3LivingDon’t take a chance.Phone 0800 111 999 immediately.Freephone numbersRepairs0800 107 0712Happy 100Birthday Rose!thSee page 2Making paymentsGeneral enquiries By phone call 01992 454 475 or freephone0800 107 0713*Calls to these are free from a landline,From a mobile they may be expensive.0800 0483 632* anytime. Online:www.b3living.org.uk/pay-onlineYou will need your tenant reference number,address, and a valid debit or credit card.To use Text Relay dial 18001 followed by the phone number, for example to call our mainnumber dial 18001 01992 453 700 (more information on page 18.)Hard to read?If you or someoneyou know needsthis newsletter inlarge print or onCD, please call01992 453 700.home is published andprinted by: B3LivingSummer 2015The newsletter for B3Living residentsTurkishIf you need help to understand the information in thisdocument, please phone 01992 453 700.ItalianLithuanianGreekArabicScania House, 17 Amwell Street,Hoddesdon EN11 8TSResidents Day2015See page 5Changes tothe boardSee page 9Follow us on twww.twitter.com/B3LivingFree!Swim VouchersEnclosed!

EditorswelcomeIf you have any ideas forfuture articles, or wouldlike to contribute yourown story please get intouch with me using thedetails below.Pippa GavaghanEditorScania House, Amwell Street,Hoddesdon EN11 8TSEmail:pippa.gavaghan@b3living.org.ukor call: 01992 453 778Free swimsvouchersenclosed withmagazine!Enjoy the summerholidays by taking tothe water at your localleisure centre. Takethe vouchersenclosed and headalong to Laura Trott orJohn Warner SportsCentre anytime from1st – 31st August 2015and you can swim forFREE!100thHappybirthday RoseOn Friday 26th June residentRose Dodge celebrated her100th Birthday with a party heldat her home in Wormley Court.Holiday-loving Rose had returnedfrom a cruise before her birthdayand enjoyed another party,complete with a disco, operatic tenor and rock music from hergranddaughter’s band, the day after.Rose’s daughter Lyn said: “Wormley Court pulled out all the stops;we could never have anticipated such warmth and love fromeveryone.”After her party Rose went on a two week holiday and said: “I willdo it while I still can.”Kirsty Cooke, B3Living’s Independent Living Team Leader said:“Rose amazes us every day with her positive attitude and her lovefor living well”.Holdbrook Hubopen for businessAre you a B3Livingleaseholder? Do you subletyour property or are youplanning to sublet in thefuture? Then we can helpyou!There are no hidden costs. Weoffer competitive rates. Our feesrange from 5% for a tenant-findservice to 8.5% for a fullymanaged service (plus VAT).We offer a variety of services:l Introduction Onlyl Let and Rentl Fully ManagedYou choose the service that suitsyour needs.Want to find out more? Call:01992 453 700 or email:home.ownership@b3living.org.uk10 Year BirthdayCelebrationsB3Living is celebrating 10 years and we need your help!We will be looking back at our journey and all thosewho helped us get where we are today – residents andstaff alike.Please share your favourite memories, picture or videos with us:l On the form belowl On Twitter #B310yrs: www.twitter.com/B3Livingl Email us: communications@b3living.org.ukl Our website form: www.b3living.org.ukWhat are your favourite memories from the last 10 years?(continue on a sheet of paper if needed)Residents of the Holdbrook Estate in Waltham Cross canaccess a whole range of services on their doorstep atthe community hub.The Hub which was created from an empty shop unit on theHoldbrook Estate, will act as a centre for a wide range orsupport, training and social actives for residents.The Holdbrook Residents Association have been using The Hubsince November 2014 as a meeting space.Broxbourne Council, Greenfield Children’s Centre, HertfordRegional College and many more are lined up to provideservices for the residents from the new venue.For more information, contact the Community Developmentteam on 01992 453 787. Follow the hub on twitter www.twitter.com/holdbrookhub or on facebook www.facebook.com/holdbrookhub2My HomeLet –Private lettingservice forB3LivingLeaseholders NewsYour name:Please return this form to Communications, B3Living, 17 AmwellStreet, Hoddesdon, EN11 8TS.3

NewsREMEMBER to test yoursmoke alarm weeklyFire safetyKnow Your PlanIf a fire starts in your home there are important steps youneed to take in order to stay safe.Be prepared:l A working smoke alarm will alert you early to afire starting, make sure that smoke alarms inyour home work properly by testing themweekly. If they don’t work report this to therepairs team. On 01992 453 700, email torepairs@b3living.org.uk or online through ourwebsite.l Plan an escape route and make sure everyonein the household knows where the nearest exitsare.l Keep escape routes clear of clutter.l Ensure keys for windows and doors are kept in aplace where everyone in the household canaccess them.What to do in case of an emergency:l Shout to make sure everyone gets outside andcall 999.l If you live in a flat or maisonette and there is afire elsewhere in the building, staying in your flatis usually safer unless heat or smoke is affectingyou or if you are told to evacuate by the fireservice.l Find a safe room away from the fire.l Keep low to the ground as smoke rises.l Use soft materials like towels or bedding toblock smoke getting under doors and open anywindows to keep the room well ventilated.If you are deaf or hard of hearing then you may not know that a smoke alarmhas activated. There is equipment that can be used in place of a standardsmoke alarm that makes a loud noise and has a flashing light. Residents cancontact Hertfordshire County Council by textphone 0300 123 4041, by textmessage 07797870591 or by email on hertsdirect@hertscc.gov.ukYou can also register your mobile phone to make emergency SMS messages tothe emergency services by texting to 999, to register your mobile phone visit thewebsite at www.emergencysms.co.uk4Local youth music rocks national awardsOur local youth musicproject ‘Take a Bow’ wasrecognised in the nationalTPAS awards for tenantsand landlords who go theextra mile to worktogether.Run out of a disused highstreet shop in Waltham Cross,young people are free toexpress themselves creativelyat open mic nights, whereaudiences watch rap, dance,poetry, music bands, comedyand magic performances.Having won the regionalaward back in March, thegroup headed to the nationalfinals where they came third.If you’d like to take part,contact Sophie Phillips on01992 453 754 or emailsophie.phillips@b3living.org.uk.Residents DayThis is a lively family eventarranged for residents toenjoy a range of fun activitiesfor adults and children.It is also an opportunity foryou to find out about newB3Living services, tell usabout the issues thatmatter most to you and tomeet our variouscommunity partners to findout about opportunitiesthat are available to you asa B3Lving resident.This year our main topic isfinancial inclusion to ensureresidents are aware of therange of services we haveavailable to them to helpimprove their financial andlife situations.Including informationabout benefits, training,education, employment,healthy eating, eating on abudget and credit union.We will also havecommunity partners at theevent from a range oforganisations that areactive in the field from JobCentre Plus, Citizens AdviceBureau, Money Advice Unit,HertSavers Credit Union,Food bank and HertsRegional College.5

Better homes Resident BlogB3ShoppingWhy do weask so manyquestions?Our Mystery Shoppers have been busytesting how we deal with their questions,making sure residents receive the bestpossible customer service.They have been trained to ask staff housing questionsacross all areas of the business. In the latest round, themystery shoppers made anonymous calls in March.This is how they rated us:GroupSpeed & greet(Answering inside6 rings and greetingwith name)Employee manner(Polite and courteous,undivided attention)Voicemail(Clear recordedgreeting andinstructions on leavinga message)Staff answer(Giving the correctanswer to a typicalscenario question)Round 17 Round 18 Round 19 Round 2091.2% 90.8% 91.1% 90.5%97.7% 98.5% 97.9% 98.6%75.8% 56.0% 81.8% 91.4%90.6% 91.3% 81.1% 86.1%For the second quarter in a row we have managed to achievean excellent ‘Green’ clean sweep across all our areas.Our Resident Mystery Shoppers have done a great job - if youwould like to help us keep customer services at their best, callDanielle on 01992 453 741.6People sometimes wonderwhy we ask questions aboutyour age, race, religion,disability or sexuality on ourforms.LGBT AlliesSupporting the right tobe yourselfDo you want to make astand for equality? Twoyears ago we launched ourAllies programme tosupport and standalongside Lesbian, Gay,Bisexual and Transgender(LGBT) colleagues. We nowwant to get you, ourresidents involved!If you would like to be a LGBTAlly, please contact PeggySharp on 01992 453 779 or emailpeggy.sharp@b3living.org.ukand for showing your supportwe will send you a free LGBTAllies badge.You will then be invited toevents and forums and havethe opportunity to share yourviews and suggest new ideas.We collect this information tomake sure everyone canaccess our services and wedon’t discriminate againstanyone.Monitoring our satisfactionsurvey results helps us see if allresidents are reporting similarsatisfaction levels. We use thisinformation to show staff andcontractors what proportion ofresidents have disabilities orfollow a particular religion, sothey are aware of the range ofpeople living in our properties.When you give any informationabout your age, race, religion,disability or sexuality, you canbe sure that it will only be usedto make things better. Somepeople worry about givinginformation in case it falls intothe wrong hands. But when weget your form, we don’t just fileit away in the basement. Thereare very strict laws to make surewe protect those details anddeal with them responsibly.Any questions? Contact PeggySharp on 01992 453 779 orpeggy.sharp@b3living.org.ukHi my name’s Marty, I am a B3Livingresident and live in Cheshunt.I wanted to write about an event that The RoyalGunpowder Mills in Waltham Abbey Essex heldrecently to mark Victory in Europe Day.On Friday 8th May the country fell silent for 2 minutes as the70th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day was marked. Acrossthe country, people remembered loved ones and lookedback on events from 70 years ago.The Royal Gunpowder Mills VE Day Celebration has beenrunning for the past 9 years and every year it becomes moreand more popular with people from across the countyattending. No matter what age you, are this is the perfectevent to see what life was like back in World War 2.The Royal Gunpowder Mills showcased songs and dancesfrom the forties as well laying on a forties menu. They hadover 350 actors recreating a live battle, a military equipmentshowcase and an aerial display with a Mustang and Spitfireflyover on Monday. For more events visit:www.royalgunpowdermills.com7