Tamworth Borough Council has awarded new contracts worth more than £100m for the improvement, repair and maintenance of the town’s 4,200 council houses over the next 10 years.
The council’s current three-year contract with Wates Living Space ends on March 31, 2020, and the new 10-year agreement will be split into two parts.
From 1 April 2020, Wates Living Space will continue to undertake planned works to council houses in the borough, including new kitchens, new bathrooms, external work and any other planned improvement projects. The Wates Living Space contract will be in the region of £50 million over the contract term.
Day-to-day and out of hours emergency repairs, as well as repairs to void properties, aids and adaptations, planned maintenance, annual gas servicing and repairs to other council property, will be undertaken by ENGIE, in a 10-year deal worth around £67m.
Both contracts also have a strong focus on delivering a range of benefits to the wider community to ensure the ongoing work of both ENGIE and Wates has a positive impact on the lives of residents in the area.
These include vocational qualifications and apprenticeship opportunities for local people, the provision of digital training courses in construction, and improvements to a council-owned facility such as a play area or community building.
Other activities to be delivered as part of the contract include community DIY workshops, projects to provide enhanced and improved security for vulnerable residents and helping to tackle fuel poverty and causes of damp/condensation.
Alongside the new contracts, the council will be bringing the repairs call centre in-house to improve the overall customer experience. From April, a dedicated repairs line will be managed by specialist repairs call handlers at Tamworth Borough Council during working hours.
The out of hours service will be provided by ENGIE for an initial period of 12 months while the new contracts are embedded.
Cllr Michelle Cook, Tamworth Borough Council’s Cabinet member for Housing Services and Communities, said: “Providing decent affordable homes is one of our main priorities and represents a significant proportion of council spending. This means we have to achieve the best value for money possible, while ensuring our housing is of a high standard and that the service we provide to tenants is a good one.
“Wates Living Space and ENGIE were selected after a robust, two-stage procurement process which included external legal and consultative support, interviews involving tenants and detailed assessments of all elements of the bids submitted.”
