Handbook contents

Download the full Tenant Handbook (PDF — 385kb)

Making changes to your home
Because many of you stay with us for less than two years, we will not let you make any major alterations or improvements to your home. We will usually be happy for you to make minor changes, like fixing a mirror to the wall, putting up shelves or installing door chains but you will need our permission first. Please contact the office to discuss your plans before you start any work of this sort.

The furniture in your flat
Your accommodation is provided with furniture. When you first move in, we will give you two copies of an inventory, listing every item in your home. This should tally with schedule two of your tenancy agreement, which lists the furniture in your flat. Please double check that everything is there and in a good condition, then return a signed copy of the inventory to the office within one week, together with a note of anything that is missing or defective.

Your flat should be furnished with all major items of furniture but not crockery, cutlery or, with the exception of blankets, any bedding. The use of our furniture is not free, a small charge is added to your rent. We will also charge you for cleaning blankets at the end of your tenancy. This will be taken off your deposit. If you need more blankets in your flat, please ask. When you move out, we will go through the flat to check that everything listed on the inventory is there. You may be charged for any losses or damage, which you did not report when you moved in. Unfortunately we do not have room to store your furniture.

Cooking equipment
There are cookers in all the properties. Microwave ovens and toasters are provided in the kitchens of Vellacott House and some street properties.

Heating and hot water
In Vellacott House and the street properties, where there are shared facilities, the cost of hot water and heating supplied to kitchens and bathrooms is included in your rent. In all other properties, any electricity you use is measured on a separate meter and billed to you each month. We are responsible for seeing that your electricity and gas supply is connected when you move in. We are also responsible for paying the gas and electricity bills.

On the Ducane estate and in Vellacott House, we will read the meters once a month and send you a bill for any electricity you have used. Please pay this when you pay your monthly rent. It costs less to use electricity at certain times. The standard (more expensive) rate applies for electricity used during the day and early evening. Between 11.00pm and 7.00am, the (much cheaper) off-peak rate applies. Your tenants’ folder has a note explaining how to use your heating system. Please ask if you would like a demonstration.

Telephones
All our properties have telephone sockets so that you can have a telephone fitted. If you are not sure how to go about this we can give you a leaflet with basic instructions. PDF ?

Washing your clothes
There is a launderette in the basement of O'Driscoll House on Du Cane Road and we can give you a key if you wish to use it. The washers and dryers are coin operated. The launderette is cleaned twice weekly but we would be grateful if you would do your best to leave it clean. If you notice any equipment that is faulty or appears to be unsafe, please report it to the office at once. We do our best to keep the launderette working safely but cannot supervise it all the time so you are responsible for your own safety while using it. If you live in one of our maisonettes and have your own machine, they are fitted with points where you can connect washing machine hoses.

Household rubbish
Each block on Du Cane Road has a rubbish chute in the stair tower for household rubbish. Please put your rubbish in a plastic bag, seal it and put it firmly inside the chute so that it does not get blocked. Do not leave bags of rubbish on the floor in the chute room. If you send someone else to get rid of rubbish, particularly if it is a child, please make sure that they know the proper procedure. The chutes should not be used before 8.00am or after 10.00pm. If you have a large item or bulky rubbish, which will not fit easily in the chute, please get in touch with the office to arrange for it to be cleared away. If you live in a street property you should put your rubbish out, sealed in a plastic bag, only on the days the council comes to collect it. There is a leaflet about this in your tenant’s folder.

Cleaning equipment
In Vellacott House one vacuum cleaner is stored in the communal kitchen on each floor. Please make sure that you return it there after use. In the street properties there is a vacuum cleaner, stored in a cupboard in each house, provided for all tenants. All flats and maisonettes on Du Cane Road are provided with vacuum cleaners.

Parking
There is parking space for cars under the block of flats on Du Cane Road. If you wish to park on the estate, please contact the office. We will let you have a transmitter to operate the automatic barriers. These are expensive to replace so we will charge you a deposit that we will give back when you return the transmitter to us.

Parking areas are only for the personal use of tenants. You should not give your transmitter to anyone who is not a tenant. If we find that you have done so, we will ask you to give it back. We are not able to provide round the clock security for the parking areas, so any cars are left here at the owner's risk. A small number of our street properties have off-street parking. The council also offers some street parking but they may charge for it.

Gardens and play areas
The gardens and landscaped areas are for all tenants. Please keep them tidy and make sure that your enjoyment of them does not disturb other residents and neighbours. There is a small children's playground between Vellacott House and Du Cane House on Du Cane Road. The play area was recently updated in March 2008.

Common room
There is a common room in the basement of Vellacott House, which is for Vellacott Tenants. However, this can be hired by other Ducane Housing Association tenants, but a fee for deposit is payable.

Security
All blocks on Du Cane Road have a door entry phone so that you can speak to anyone who rings your doorbell. You cannot open the door from your flat so you will need to go down to the front door personally. This is to make sure that only genuine visitors can get in the building. There is a security lock on the main front door and a further two locks on the door of each flat, with the exception of Vellacott House. Please make sure that all doors are securely locked when you go out.

If you lose your keys and are locked out, you can call us on the emergency phone number. A member of staff will let you in as soon as possible. If the emergency service is called out for work that could wait until normal office hours, we may charge a fee. We have special lights installed at the rear of all blocks and parking areas on Ducane Road to detect any intruders. All ground floor properties on Du Cane Road have burglar alarms.

Tips for avoiding burglary
These steps may help to cut down the risk of burglary:

• Close all windows and lock all doors before you go out, and set the burglar alarm if there is one installed
• Check that all ground floor windows, and windows near pipes and flat roofs, are closed
• Never leave keys under the mat or on a string inside the letterbox
• Do not leave notes for callers when you are out
• Cancel any regular deliveries such as milk or daily papers if you go away and ask your neighbours to keep an eye on your property while you are gone. Leave the address or phone number where you can be contacted in an emergency with neighbours or the office
• Ask any callers you do not know to identify themselves. Our staff and representatives from the electricity and gas companies carry identity cards. If you are at all suspicious about someone's identity refuse to open your door and call the police
• Never tie anything to your keys which might show who they belong to or which property they are for in case they get lost
• Never leave the door to your block wedged open

Your home has the best level of security we can afford. If you wish to improve it further, please discuss this with us before you fit any extra equipment. If you are burgled or someone tries to break in, please tell both the police and us. We will try to make good any damage to doors or windows.

Insurance
Our insurance covers the structure of your building and any furniture and fixtures we have provided against risks like fire, flood or subsidence. We strongly advise you to take out separate insurance cover to protect your own personal property against loss through fire or theft. There are some reasonably priced packages on offer and any reputable insurance company will give you a quote.

Our insurance policy does NOT cover the following circumstances:

• damage caused to your belongings by another tenant, for example if they let the bath overflow and it floods your flat
• loss or damage to your property where it is not our fault, for example if frost causes the pipes to burst or the damage is caused by contractors who are not working for us

Pets
You are not allowed to keep any animals, reptiles or birds in your home. The only exceptions to this rule are guide dogs for blind people and hearing dogs for deaf people.

Being a considerate neighbour
We appreciate that people lead different lifestyles but on occasion some of the things we do may upset other people. Your tenancy agreement is very clear about the type of behavior we will not accept. Anyone who does not keep to these terms is breaking his or her part of the agreement so could be evicted.

The best way to avoid causing any nuisance is to talk to your neighbours to agree acceptable standards of behavior. This does not need to lead to a set of hard and fast rules but it will probably make it a lot easier to discuss ways to tackle an issue if it develops into a problem later. Our housing services manager will try to help resolve a problem but the key to a successful outcome will be co-operation between you and your neighbours. Noise is a common problem.

None of our homes are completely soundproof. We simply cannot afford to make them so. People have different views of what is noisy behavior and, while you may think that what you are doing is reasonably quiet, your neighbours may not agree. If you need to do something that may be noisy, try to do this when it is least likely to disturb others. There are also small things you can do to keep noise levels down, like being careful about where you position the TV, washing machine or sound system, keeping your voice down when you are outside the flat and being particularly quiet late at night or early in the morning.