How to report repairs

If you need to report an essential repair for your property, contact us directly on 0800 054 6710 or by emailing customers@ccha.biz. Alternatively, you can use the repairs form to submit your request. To learn more about our repairs and planned maintenance responsibilities, refer to our Repairs & Planned Maintenance Booklet. 

For heating and gas servicing enquiries, you can contact Smith & Byford on 0800 169 7703 or by email at cchagas@smithandbyford.com. If you suspect that a gas appliance is unsafe, it’s essential to turn it off and contact Smith & Byford right away using the above information. If you smell gas, believe there is a gas leak, or suspect the presence of carbon monoxide, you should call the gas emergency number immediately on 0800 111 999.

Remember to turn off the gas supply at the meter, open any windows and doors, avoid using any electrical switches, and put out all flames.  

Stay safe! 

We recently helped a resident who faced financial and emotional struggles due to her son’s condition. Jane, and Welfare, Benefits and Debt Advisor, provided them with the necessary support and resources to alleviate their financial burdens and improve their well-being. Here we share their story and how we were able to assist them in their time of need.

Our resident is a single mum of a young man with autism. The family survives on income support of less than £50 a week and a top-up of carers’ allowance. The young man only gets a disability payment and is not eligible for any benefits in his own right due to changes in Welfare Reform while he is a student. Overall, He is not well enough to work.

What were we able to do?

Jane supported the single mum to apply for a student grant and bursary for her son to help with travel expenses, food and equipment and essential electronic devices. Jane also assisted her in claiming Personal Independence Payment, which should boost income by around £500 per month, increase Housing Benefit by over £100 per month and reduce how much council tax she needs to pay to just £6 per week. We were also able to award a one-off payment to help with the electricity and gas bills.

This is just one of your stories on how we have helped you. If you face similar challenges, please don’t hesitate to contact us by calling 0800 054 6710 or emailing customers@ccha.biz. One of our team will be in touch and let you know how we can help.

A few of our residents in Thornton Heath gathered on Monday 18 December for a coffee morning filled with informative Q&A sessions and a chance to create a festive wreath.

The event saw the attendance of colleagues Donna and Lorraine, including Axis, the Safer Neighbourhood Team and Delores from Extended Hands, who provided information on IT support and its benefits to the residents.

Axis provided an update on all the scheduled repair work at the property, while the Safer Neighbourhood Team discussed how they would tackle anti-social behaviour.

Both Donna and Lorraine provided an excellent opportunity for the residents to discuss their concerns with their guests and gain valuable insights into the various services and support available to them.

In addition to the Q&A sessions, the residents got creative by making their wreaths provided with the support of Chequers. The festive activity was welcomed by a few in attendance, and the results were awe-inspiring.

This coffee morning was a testament to the strength of the residents and the importance of coming together to support one another.

With the cost of living crisis and cold weather, London councils have opened warm banks across the boroughs. There are public places like libraries or churches where anyone can go for free if they can’t heat their homes. 

The Local Government Association has said that councils are ready to work around the clock to keep residents safe during the cold weather. They ask people to check on those who may limit their heating use due to rising energy bills. Warm Welcome Spaces has coordinated a map of generous banks across the UK, with over 3,000 warm spaces  this winter and more locations added daily.

What can you expect?

What’s available in your area?

Find your local warm space here by scrolling down and filter your search options.

Stay warm, stay well, stay connected!

Dear residents,

All Tax Credit claimants will have been sent the leaflet shown on the left.

If you have received the red and blue leaflet about Tax Credits ending, this is not an official migration notice. You do not have to claim Universal Credit yet. You may be better off on Universal Credit, however, if you find out you’ll be worse off on Universal Credit and you move over before the official migration notice, you will not receive Transitional Protection.

The official migration notice is a 3 page letter which gives the dates your tax credits are due to end and the date you must claim Universal Credit by. It will also state at the bottom of each page: “This is a migration notice issued under Regulation 44 of the Universal credit (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2014.”. This letter means your tax credits will end and you will have to make a new claim for Universal Credit.

To find out if you should claim Universal Credit and ‘give up’ your Tax Credits, please contact our Welfare, Benefit and Debt Advisor, Jane White, on 0800 054 6710 or email janew@ccha.biz.

You can also carry out your own ‘better off’ calculation using the Benefits Calculator on the entitled to website.

Please note:

In this money matters edition, we cover:

Croydon Council is currently reviewing the 25% council tax discount. 

Croydon Council is contacting many residents with a 25% discount on their council tax bill if they are the only person over 18 in the household.

If it does apply to you and you receive one of these letters, please do not ignore it or you may lose your discount. This is true even if you do not currently pay council tax because, for example, you are on certain benefits. Information on how to reply to the review process is given in the letter.

You may also be eligible for the discount if all the adults in the property receive certain disability benefits.
For more information, please visit the Croydon Council website.

Next round of ‘Cost of Living Payments’

The next round of Cost of Living payments will be paid out between 31 October and 19 November. This is for residents on certain means-tested benefits, including universal credit, income-related ESA, tax credits and pension credits. Please note, you need to have been eligible for these benefits between 18 August and 17 September 2023.

If you have recently applied for Pension Credit and reached State Pension age during this time, you may still be eligible. If you have any doubts or concerns, you can call Jane White on 0800 054 6710.

If you are still waiting to receive the payment and believe you should have, please contact .

This is a friendly reminder to be careful of suspicious calls, emails, or texts related to the ‘Cost of Living Payments’. It’s always best to be cautious and avoid clicking on links or providing personal information.

Get help with savings if you’re on a low income (Help to Save)

This is a government program which is designed to assist low earners in saving money. If you’re eligible, you could receive a bonus of 50p for every £1 you save over four years.

To open a Help to Save account, you must meet certain criteria, including being entitled to the Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit or claiming Universal Credit with a household income of £722.45 or more in your last monthly assessment period.

You can find out more about eligibility and how to apply by visiting here.

Are you eligible for help with dental costs? 

If you are coming up to State Pension age and are currently on a means-tested benefit that entitles you to free NHS dental care, such as ESA or Universal Credit. This does NOT automatically mean you will be entitled to help with dental costs when you move onto your State Pension only when you get Pension Credit beforehand.

However, you may qualify for free or reduced-cost treatment through the NHS Low Income Scheme if you have a low income, even if you are not on benefits.

If you would like help or advice to find out if you’re eligible, please get in touch with Jane White on 0800 054 6710.

Winter is coming!

If, like many of us, you have had your heating off for the past several months due to warmer weather and concerns over rising fuel bills, we urge you to check that your boiler is functioning well. It’s best to do this early in case you discover a fault.

If you do have issues with your boiler, you can call Smith & Byford on 0800 169 7703 or email cchagas@smithandbyford.com for all heating and gas servicing enquiries.

Check your meters

Although the energy price cap is finally coming down, without the government’s additional £400 support this year and with standing charges rising in some cases, you may find your bills are still worryingly high compared to previous years.

Resident often contact Jane, our Welfare, Benefit and Debt Advisor, with concerns about high gas or electricity bills. This can happen for various reasons, but many residents discover they have been billed for months, sometimes years, based on estimates.

Make sure you have taken up to date meter readings and passed these on to your energy supplier either online or by the phone.

Remember, you will likely use more energy at home over the winter months. Don’t rush to reduce your direct debit just because you have a small credit on your account.

Warm home discount

If you have high energy costs, you can check if you’re eligible to receive the discount of £150 by using the government’s Warm Home Discount online tool.

Take care and stay safe!

After a challenging year, we’re pleased to share our achievements and performance for the year in our latest Annual Report. In this edition, we review each of our objectives, focusing on improving services to residents, ensuring compliance and providing new homes. We also share our performance in complaints and resident satisfaction, and cover lessons learnt from resident feedback.

Read the Annual Report online today.

“We know how important it is to get services right because the cost-of-living crisis is putting even more pressure on people’s finances.” – Heather Thomas, Chair of ccha.

We hope you enjoy reading this edition of the report, and if you have any feedback or suggestions, please email us at citeam@ccha.biz.

If you’d like to receive ccha publications directly to your inbox, you can sign up to our email list.

 

If you need the report in an alternative format, we can provide print versions, large print, audiotape, Braille and translated versions. Request yours by calling 0800 054 6710 or emailing citeam@ccha.biz.

Read the summer newsletter online today.

In this edition, we cover:

For a chance to win Love2Shop vouchers, we have a new competition for all movie lovers.

We hope you enjoy reading this edition of Connections and if you have any feedback, please email us at rachell@ccha.biz and samm@ccha.biz.

Want to receive Connections directly to your inbox? Sign up to our email list.

Do you need the newsletter in an alternative format? We can provide print versions, large print, audio tape, Braille and translated versions. Request yours by calling 0800 054 6710 or emailing citeam@ccha.biz.

Good news for pre-payment Gas and Electricity customers. 

From July 2023, if you pay on a prepay meter, you’ll only pay what is necessary for the gas and electricity used, similar to how those with Direct Debits pay.

How to stay safe from scammers and fraudsters 

The company WHICH has introduced a Scam Tracker to help you keep up to date with the latest scams.

Click here to stay informed on the latest scams.

Here are a few recent scams to be aware of: 

The Household Support Fund (HSF) – what is it and could it help you during difficult financial times? The governments has given the HSF to each local council to help during the Cost of Living crisis. It was recently extended to March 2024.

Residents can apply to their local council for help with emergency items, including food, gas and electricity, white goods etc. Each council has its own scheme.

Apply for the Housing Support Fund with Croydon Council.

Apply for the Household Support Fund with Sutton Council.

Apply for the Household Support Fund with Bromley Council.

Please note: due to high demand, the councils will close applications from time to time. If you need help, please don’t delay in completing an application.

Changes to childcare costs for some Universal Credit claimants from 28 June.

Some people who get Universal Credit (US) will be entitled to more help with child care costs. This will benefit working parents who are paying more than the maximum amount of child care costs covered by UC.

UC currently pays 85% of the total cost of child care, which is staying the same. Universal Credit used to pay up to a maximum of £760 per month for one child and £1,304 for two or more children. This maximum amount is increasing by 47% to £951 for one child and £1,630 for two or more children.

There are also changes to when childcare costs are paid when you start a job or if your hours increase, which should help with that initial payment & rise in childcare costs.

For more information on Universal Credit and the changes to Child Care costs, please visit the government website.

Migration from old/legacy benefits onto Universal Credit

Eventually, working-age people will be transferred from their existing means-tested benefits (child tax credits, working tax credits, income-related ESA, income-related JSA, income support and housing benefit) onto Universal Credit. This is not a choice, and if you don’t transfer when instructed to by DWP, your benefits will stop altogether.

For those on contribution benefits (contribution ESA and contribution JSA), these are not included in the migration onto Universal Credit. No other benefits are affected, and you will continue to receive these as usual.

Tax credit only claimants will be the first to be moved from August 2023

If the only benefit you claim from the 6 highlighted above is a tax credit, then you will be migrated from August 2023. If you claim more than one of these highlighted benefits, you are not one of these people.

Please note no one should be worse off on Universal Credit than they were on their ‘old’ benefits. This is known as Transitional Protection. If you are worried or receive a letter about switching to UC, please do get in touch with our Welfare Advisor by calling 07384255630 or emailing janew@ccha.biz.

Government announces a 2-year extension to ‘top up’ gaps in your National Insurance Contributions and possibly increase your State Pension. 

On 12 June, the government announced that people now have an additional 2 years, until April 2025, to voluntarily fill in any gaps in their National Insurance Record. You may have periods when you were:

Please note that some of these ‘gaps’ would have been filled in if you were claiming certain other benefits.

If you want to find out if you have gaps in your record or view your State Pension forecast, you will need to sign up for Government Gateway online. Please do get in touch if you need help to do this.

Visit the gov.uk website to find out more.

 

 

This summer we have an exciting competition for you to take part in!

Chequers, our gardening and cleaning contractors, are encouraging you to get into gardening and grow your own plants. The winner with the tallest sunflower will win two tickets to Kew Gardens! It’s a fun and rewarding experience, especially when you enjoy the fruits of your labour with your family, friends and neighbours.

For this competition, you’ve hopefully planted your sunflower seeds earlier in spring. Some of our residents have already been given seeds during our open days earlier this year to plant.

The competition ends on 20 August 2023. Make sure the picture reaches us before then. The winner with the tallest sunflower will win two tickets to Kew Gardens!

Good luck and happy planting!