What Do We Do?

The Association carries out a full range of Housing Services.

Walter Street

These can be identified as:

DEVELOPMENT
Building and Improving Houses and the Environment
The Association primarily exists to provide high quality houses for rent, however, we also provide a comprehensive factoring service for owners and sharing owners. We also provide a number of amenity and special needs accommodation to rent.

We believe that it is important to create a variety of housing in the area to suit the different needs of the residents.

The Development Work is funded by Communities Scotland through Housing Association Grant and private funding from lending authorities.

PROPERTY SERVICES
Repairs and Renewals
We aim to maintain our properties to a high standard and provide an efficient, responsive repair service through employing our own in-house team of tradesmen. For the remainder of repair works the Committee invites a range of private maintenance contractors to tender for its routine maintenance work, and their performance is monitored on a regular basis.

We also put aside funds for a cyclical maintenance programme to ensure the maximum life of buildings and build reserves to enable the Association to undertake major repairs and renewal which will be required in the future.

Contractor performance, maintenance costs and the volume of repair types is reported in details at monthly Sub-Committee meetings.

The maintenance is funded from rental income and the annual budget for repairs is set and monitored by the Housing Services Sub-Committee.

HOUSING MANAGEMENT
Managing the Housing Stock
The Association employs a team of professionally qualified and experienced staff to ensure a good quality service to our tenants, sharing owners and owner-occupiers.

The Committee formulates policies regarding allocations, factoring, rent setting, arrears control and all aspects of housing management. It is also responsible for formulating the Tenancy Agreement and the procedures associated with letting and managing the Association's housing stock.

Staff advise the Committee on all these matters and Milnbank along with most Associations, retain the services of a Solicitor who can be called upon at any time to advise and support the Committee. In addition "Good Practice" guidance from the SFHA, Communities Scotland, TPAS and other advisory bodies is also used as reference and guidance for Housing Management Policies.

FINANCE
The Association is registered with Communities Scotland, which has been its main source of funding for house and environmental improvements and in addition the Association borrows money from private sources.

The precise amount of grant varies from project to project and private loans are repaid like a mortgage from the Association's rental income.

The rents fund all the running costs, including staff wages, office overheads, day to day repairs, planned maintenance and future renewals of fitments.

The Association's income and expenditure is planned in an annual budget which is monitored on an on-going basis.

Community Development

Placing Emphasis on the Wider Social Aspects of the Area

Although the Association's primary concern is improving and maintaining its property and those of owner occupiers, the Association places great emphasis on the wider social aspects of the area.

To support this, Community Development activities are actively encouraged and a community hall is available for local use.

A number of clubs are available:

• Monday Club
• Parents & Toddlers
• Angling
• Chat-In-Club
• Bingo

In addition annual community events like a Gala Day and Community Dances are organised.