Our service standards

Service Area	Standard	Where can I find out more
Responding to you	We should always acknowledge an enquiry within two working days and aim to provide a full response within ten days.	You can find out more on our responding to you page. We monitor ‘2-ten’ performance through regular Mystery Shopping exercises and data analysis of calls and emails. This includes independent scrutiny by residents of the quality, professionalism and empathy of responses.
Repairs	Emergency repairs including lift breakdowns – attended to within 24 hours. All standard repairs, including minor lift repairs, should be completed within 20 days. We provide an enhanced service for people with additional needs. In most cases this means we will treat any repairs requests in the same way as an emergency.	More information can be found on our repairs page. We report our repairs performance annually as part of our Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) scorecard, and in our annual report to residents, which you can find in our performance page.
Building safety	We carry out regular safety checks on: Gas safety – checked annually (renters only). Fire Risk Assessments (FRAs) – carried out annually. Fire door checks – front doors (annually), communal fire doors (quarterly). Asbestos monitoring – carried out on a risk – based basis. Lifts – checked according to usage. All lifts checked at least every six months. Water safety – annually.	We report on performance in carrying out safety checks in our TSM scorecard and annual report to residents, which you can find in our performance page. You can find more about our approach to building safety, including detailed information for leaseholders in our safety section.
Complaints about our services	Newlon follows the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaints code and we have a two stage complaints process: Stage 1 – we respond within 10 working days. Stage 2 – we respond within 20 working days.	You can find detailed information about how we respond to complaints, our approach to learning from complaints, our self-assessment against the Ombudsman’s code and our key complaints contacts in the complaints section of this site. How we perform in responding to complaints within timescales and residents’ satisfaction with our complaints handling and information on the number of complaints we receive is detailed in our TSM scorecard and our annual performance report to residents, which you can find in our performance page.
Dealing with damp and mould	Emergency hazards – we will investigate and carry out relevant safety work within 24 hours. We will provide alternative accommodation within 24 hours if an emergency hazard cannot be resolved in this time. We will provide a written summary of our investigation and conclusions within three working days of an emergency hazard being reported. We will investigate any potential significant hazards within ten working days. We will provide a written summary of our investigation and conclusions within three working days of the investigation being completed. We will undertake relevant safety work within five working days of the investigation concluding, if the investigation identifies a significant hazard begin, or take steps to begin, any further required works within five working days of the investigation concluding, if the investigation identifies a significant or emergency hazard. If steps cannot be taken to begin work in five working days this must be done as soon as possible, and work must be physically started within 12 weeks.	You can find further information on our approach to dealing with damp and mould in the section on our site.
Diverse needs and Accessibility	We provide a range of communications options and service adaptations to meet the diverse needs of our residents. These can range from providing materials in braille to promoting advocacy or offering aids and adaptations and reasonable adjustments.	You can find specific information on the services we provide in the accessing our services and aids and adaptations sections of this site .
Antisocial Behaviour (ASB) and hate incidents	We respond to reports of ASB in line with our 2-ten response standard. This includes making contact with any alleged perpetrators within ten working days. We’re committed to responding swiftly to reports of antisocial behaviour, especially in emergency situations. While our 2-ten response standard outlines our general approach, we prioritise urgent cases to ensure residents feel safe and supported when it matters most.	You can find more detailed information in the ASB and hate crime sections of this site. This includes our ASB policy, which sets out our approach to managing ASB and our ASB information leaflet .
Communal areas and estate standards	Our estate inspectors and resident inspectors regularly check the standards of communal areas.	Details of standards we inspect against can be found in our Estates Standards leaflet. To ensure resident oversight, we train and encourage residents to sign up as estate inspectors. We report on satisfaction with communal areas in our TSM scorecard and in our annual performance report to residents, which you can find in our performance page.
Rent and Service Charges	We increase rents based on a government formula which is applied on an annual basis. This varies depending on the type of property you live in and in some cases where you live. For Shared Owners the formula in relation to the rent you pay is set out in your lease. Some leases have slightly different formulas in them depending on where you live. You can find more information on this and the formula applied where you live in the paying your rent section. Service charges are payments by residents towards the cost of shared services such as cleaning of communal areas, gardening and safety checks.	You can find detailed information on the rent formulas we apply to different housing tenures and when any changes to rents are applied in the paying your rent section. We send out quarterly rent statements and you can also check your balance or make a payment at any time via the My Newlon portal. Detailed information on how services charges are calculated and charged and your rights and responsibilities can be found in the service charges section.
Senior roles and compliance responsibilities	Sarah Shaw – Housing Services Director is responsible for overseeing compliance with Regulator of Social Housing Consumer Standards and for complaints handling performance. Blossom Shakespeare, is a Newlon resident, Board member and Resident Forum member. She is our Member Responsible for Complaints. Symon Sentain – Property Services Director – is our Health and Safety and Building Safety lead.	Information about responsibility for complaints can be found on the complaints section of this website. You can find details of our Executive Team and Board and their areas of responsibility can be found in the about us section of this site.
Our Performance	We report on our performance in our TSM scorecard and in our annual performance report to residents. This includes information on how tenant feedback has informed service improvements, how income is spent, and details of directors’ remuneration and our management costs.	You can find information about our performance in our TSM scorecard and in our annual performance report to residents, which you can find in our performance page.
Residents’ voice (tenant influence	We provide a wide range of opportunities for tenants to influence, scrutinise, or lead on strategy and service decisions. (Include examples?).	Detailed information is available in the getting involved section.
Allocations and lettings	We are required to allocate affordable homes fairly and according to housing need. Information on how we do this can be found in the lettings and allocations section of this site. We are not able to move people on the basis of overcrowding unless there is an independently assessed medical need. We also offer and regularly promote our mutual exchange scheme and support residents to join national schemes including Homeswapper and specialist exchange schemes like seaside and country homes.	You can find more information about how we allocate homes on our our Lettings and allocations page. You can find more information about how residents can move to another social rent home, and about Mutual Exchange and transfers on the moving to another home section.
Neighbourhood role	We play an active role in supporting communities in the boroughs where we provide housing. This includes providing community hubs in Islington and Tower Hamlets, supporting local foodbanks and working with a wide range of community based partners.	For more information visit our working for communities page. We also provide an overview of our community activities in our annual performance report to residents and our Environmental, Social and Governance report. You can find these in the annual reports section.
Domestic Abuse	We take tackling and dealing with domestic abuse very seriously. We also work to help staff members and residents spot the signs of abuse to assist in preventing it and reduce possible problems. This includes providing information and training for our staff .	More information on our approach can be found on our website on the Domestic abuse section. This includes information such as our domestic abuse policy, information about how we work with key local partners to minimise domestic abuse and provide support and signposting to specialist organisations who can provide advice and assistance for people experiencing domestic abuse or who are concerned that someone they know may be.

How we provide services

Our aim is to provide excellent services that our residents are satisfied with. We are also committed to ensuring that residents’ voices are heard and we act on their feedback.

We expect our staff and contractors to follow these behaviours when working with residents:

Work with empathy – by showing empathy, fairness and respect by communicating appropriately and considering how the way we act can make someone feel.

Be trusted and reliable – including taking ownership, sticking to deadlines, doing what we say we will do.

Demonstrate respect and inclusivity – to each other and residents, as well as considering how someone’s vulnerability, additional needs, diversity or individual circumstances might make a difference to the way we need to deliver services.

Be focused on our residents – making sure we have understood what residents need, following through on issues, making sure things are completed, checking in with residents and resolving problems.

Work together – to deliver services that mean residents don’t need to chase us up and are not passed between teams without knowing who is dealing with their enquiry.