Service charges
Services charges cover the cost of additional services within your tenancy. Here you can find the full list of additional services we provide as a part of your service payment.
Service charges
Our service charges cover additional services we provide to you and include security (including door entry and CCTV), cleaning, heating and lighting in communal areas, and grounds maintenance.
The additional services we provide as part of your service charge payment.
Annual servicing and maintenance of the digital aerial in a block.
Servicing, regular cleaning, and maintenance of bin chutes within a block.
Servicing, repairs and maintenance of the static CCTV system within a block.
Caretaker service charge covers costs such as caretaker salaries, rent, agency staff, equipment and uniforms.
Cleaning of all communal areas such as corridor and stairways sweeping and mopping and communal door cleaning. For sheltered schemes, this includes communal room, kitchen and communal toilets cleaning. It also covers salaries, agency staff, cleaning products/supplies, tipping, litter picking, vehicle hire and insurance.
Electricity supply in the communal areas of the property.
Covers the costs of future replacement or decoration of the shared community room in our sheltered scheme blocks.
This service is for the communal door of a block, and covers the cost of system maintenance including callouts, repairs and the telephone line.
Covers grounds maintenance within your block and open spaces that may not be maintained by the council. This includes gardeners, salaries, agency staff, equipment, repairs, tipping waste and vehicle hire.
Service, maintenance and repair of the fire alarm system. It also includes the service and replacement of fire extinguishers for your block.
Covers the heating of communal areas.
Includes the cost of warden call equipment and Independent Living Advisors' salaries.
This charge covers the servicing contract, insurance, call-outs and repairs to the lifts within your block.
This is 10% of the total cost of eligible service charges. This covers the administration of tendering for new contractors, managing contracts, dealing with queries and complaints, checking and paying invoices, and preparing and issuing service charge statements.
Service and maintenance of booster pumps, dry risers, electrical testing, lightning conductor service, PAT testing and ventilation service.
Applies if you/the resident has a phone installed with an agreed time to alert our Customer Resolution Centre to confirm safety. If the agreed call is not made, this will be escalated until contact is made to confirm you are OK.
Service, maintenance and repairs of the pedestrian and car park gates in your block.
Service of water tanks within your block. It also covers the ongoing maintenance and any repair works that may need to be done, including legionella testing.
Window cleaning carried out at our blocks and sheltered schemes.
How we set our service charges
We only charge you for the costs of delivering our services. Each year we assess how much we expect to spend on providing services to your home, we base this on an estimate of costs, inflation, and reflects the costs charged by our contractors.
These costs are then apportioned (divided) by the number of properties that receive the service. At the end of the financial year, we then review what we have charged you and compare with our service delivery costs. We apply any surplus/deficit adjustments against your charge for the next financial year.
February-March
You will receive a letter advising of your new service charges from April based on estimated costs for the following year.
April
From April the new service charge year starts, and you will begin paying your new service charge price.
May - August
We review expenditure and compile accounts for the previous year ending 31 March.
September
In September, customers will receive service charge statements showing what the services cost compared to what they were charged.
October - November
In October and November, work starts on budget setting for the proposed estimates.