Repairs and maintenance policy

In accordance with the terms of the Council’s tenancy agreements, tenants are required to let our employees, contractors or anyone else working on our behalf into the property to inspect its condition or that of any fixtures and fittings, or to carry out repair, maintenance or improvement works or for any other reasonable purpose. Unless in an emergency, we will give a minimum of 24 hours’ notice.

Where access cannot be gained to undertake a repair, the Council will take appropriate measures to make further arrangements for works to be carried out.

These measures may include some or all of the following:

• Leaving a card asking the tenant to rearrange a visit
• Telephoning the tenant to rearrange the visit
• Writing to the tenant requesting that they contact the Council to rearrange a visit
• Sending a surveyor out to inspect in instances where the tenant’s original repair report suggests a potentially hazardous situation exists

In some circumstances, and depending on the nature of the repair, a request may be cancelled if repeated attempts to gain access are not successful.

However, if the repair is considered necessary for health and safety or other reasons, preventing access to a property may be considered a breach of their tenancy and result in legal action being taken to gain access. The cost of this will be passed on to the tenant in accordance with our Recharge Policy.

In addition to allowing access, tenants are responsible for cleaning surfaces, moving furniture and personal belongings from the area that the repair will be carried out in.

Tenants are also required not to indirectly obstruct access to their property, for example, by accumulating furniture, personal belongings, stored items, or unhygienic conditions.

Tenants must observe the requirements of Health & Safety legislation when operatives are carrying out work at the property. This includes removing pets and having a smoke-free environment.