Protecting our customers
Our tenancy sustainment service aims to improve the dignity, life opportunities, and financial wellbeing of our customers.
You can find some real life case studies below:
For more information including; recent changes, improving our contact centre, developing MyAster and developing a positive complaints culture, click here.
Roger was referred due to concerns regarding the number of items he had in his property and the affect it was having on his wellbeing. Roger was receiving support from the local mental health team and had previously suffered a small stroke leaving him weak down one side.
Our Tenancy Sustainment Officer, Sue, explained that when she first met Roger:
“I took the time to really get to know him and understand what was important to him. He told me that he loved music and had previously enjoyed playing his beloved record collection but could no longer do this as his record player was buried under a mound of items in his living room. Hearing how important this was to Roger we agreed that being able to play his records again was a goal to aim for.
Roger was very anxious about my involvement, so we worked at a pace that was comfortable for him. His thoughts and feelings were being considered at every stage.
No items were ever removed without Roger’s agreement. We chose an area to work on and discussed the pros and cons of what should stay or could go. Initially we worked on Roger’s bedroom as he was having difficulty getting in and out of bed.
Gradually, Roger started to relax, and my visits became more frequent as his confidence to remove more items grew, feeling the benefits of having the help to create a more orderly, safer, home."
Roger said:
“It’s like having a whole new life. I’m very grateful for the support I've had and feel much happier. I can move around the house so much easier which is something I never thought I’d be able to do.”
Supporting Roger to declutter
Roger, a customer in his late seventies who lives alone, was referred to the tenancy sustainment team in October 2023.
For more information including; recent changes, improving our contact centre, developing MyAster and developing a positive complaints culture, click here.
Mr S needed help applying for Universal Credit (UC) and was suffering with his mental health. He had rent arrears to pay, and UC would not pay for the bedroom tax owed by the extra bedroom that resulted from the original move in, when his son lived with him.
Our Financial Wellbeing Officer, Jack, supported Mr S to apply for a discretionary housing payment (DHP), to see if the council would help him pay for the extra bedroom he could no longer afford. Mr S was also caring for his elderly mum.
Jack built up a great relationship with Mr S and he’d said he would like to get back into work. Jack made a referral to Nikita, our Into Work Officer, and she helped Mr S gain employment with a local company. Nikita chatted to the job centre, and they agreed to fund accommodation for Mr S to stay in a hotel whilst he was being trained and went through his induction. We also provided him with food and utility vouchers to keep him going until he had his first wages.
Working together successfully
Mr S was referred to our financial wellbeing team.
For more information including; recent changes, improving our contact centre, developing MyAster and developing a positive complaints culture, click here.
Amanda received an inheritance and was unsure how this affected any benefits she may be entitled to. Our Officer was helping her apply for UC and she’d also mentioned that she had a desire to become self-employed. Amanda was considering getting back into employment, so a referral to our Into Work Officer was made.
Amanda found a job locally that she wanted to apply for, and we supported her with the initial application and her covering letter. She was successful with her application and was offered an interview. We booked in some time to support her with interview preparation. In the meantime, she found another job which she was interested in, which she was encouraged to also apply for. We suggested if she was, at best, offered both, she could decide which best suited her requirements.
Due to no fault of her own, the job offer for the first interview was retracted, but she had attended an interview for the other role.
Following further interview preparation with us, Amanda was successful with the second interview and soon started back to work! This is a part time position and will allow her to build up her self-employed business alongside her new working hours.
As Amanda has not worked for several years and the role is a temporary position, we keep her case open and continue to stay in contact to make sure she has settled into the job and can continue to support. In addition to this, we’ve recently registered Amanda for some online courses through The Digital College, which will help her both in her new role and in becoming self-employed.
Amanda commented:
“Thank you so much for your help. You and all at Aster have been amazing. You just don't realise the help that is out there. I've been so lucky.”
Help to get back into work
Amanda was already working with our Financial Wellbeing Officer to access benefit advice because she hadn’t been employed for a significant amount of time due to ill health.
Our Welfare Reform team is a specialist team within the financial wellbeing team, that provides the rent data the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) needs to pay the housing costs within a Universal Credit (UC) award correctly. To do this more efficiently, we've introduced some new technology. This has allowed us to spend more time talking to and supporting customers rather than spending so many hours sending rent data.
We’ve saved over 400 hours of administrative work to free up our team to provide personalised contact and guidance for our customers instead.
In addition, we have started a service called “Move To UC” which helps people understand if they will be better off on Universal Credit and if so, we give advice and support to help them make the application. We’re also giving advice and support to customers who receive a specific letter from the DWP, inviting them to move from Tax Credits and other old-style benefits onto Universal Credit.
Helping you with Universal Credit
We worked with Sharon from Somerset, one of our customers, over an eight-week period. Using our Money Advice Tool and our knowledge and expertise, we helped Sharon to find out she would be £350 better off every month on Universal Credit (UC). We gave her the advice she needed to make an individual application based on her personal circumstances.
When customers come to us for advice on UC, we provide a full assessment of benefit entitlement and advise how to apply for UC based on their individual circumstances.
Despite the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, the level of rent arrears at the end of the financial year has seen a slight reduction from 1.84% of customers last year to 1.75% of customers this year.
Rent arrears are contractual routine housing payments that become overdue when an agreed payment is not made. We continue to provide all the support we can to any customer struggling to pay their rent and will only take repossession action as a final resort, when we can’t reach an affordable agreement. This has resulted in very few evictions being carried out. We always encourage customers to get in touch with us if you are experiencing any financial difficulties so we can help you.
Ahead of the start of the 2024/25 financial year, in which there are 53 Mondays, but Universal Credit will only pay rent over 52 weeks, we contacted all affected customers in advance. This is for awareness and understanding, to make financial planning for the last week of payment, not covered by benefits, easier to plan for and manage.
We continued to work closely with local authorities to provide creative solutions for anyone facing homelessness. We review the circumstances of any new customer and help with any specific needs, working with external partners if required. Our financial wellbeing team works inclusively with those with limited financial options to help them to plan and manage their housing costs.
Even though we’ve grown over the years, we pride ourselves on making sure our customers receive a good quality, personal, reliable and local service. We recognise that we need to adapt our services to the needs of the local area and the customers that live there. We understand the importance of your home and local communities and we want to help you enjoy and make the best use of these.
The customer accounts team continues to work with some customers faced with moving to Universal Credit without an interim income and the difficulties created by the hike in the cost of living due to inflationary rises and pressures.
Supporting Sharon
Rent arrears and changes
to Universal Credit
Customer accounts
