Ralph Takes Property Care Lead

Ralph Middlemore has been appointed by Central Borders Housing Group to run its Property Care maintenance and repair service.

Ralph will be responsible for leading this high-performing maintenance team and for winning contracts to deliver its specialist services to other organisations.

Property Care was formerly the direct labour organisation of South Staffordshire Housing Association, which is the founder member of Central Borders Housing Group.

“This side of the organisation is going to grow and the challenge is to maintain the organisation’s strong values while that happens,” said Ralph.

“Property Care has considerable strengths and my immediate goal is to start selling those strengths to partner organisations. The service is efficient, provides good value for money and combines the sensible application of technology with a loyal and skilled workforce. This enables us to give the best possible service to our customers. The customer satisfaction rate of more than 96 per cent bears this out.

“This is an exciting time to be in the sector. It has undergone a lot of change and consolidation. My challenge in this new role is now to take the service which Property Care has established and use it to help other organisations delivery high-quality services to their stakeholders.”

Central Borders Housing Group has now completed recruitment in a number of key posts, aimed at focusing the business and further strengthening the management team.

Ralph, a chartered surveyor, has moved from a housing organisation in Doncaster.

(Released 15th July 2008)

Design Challenge for Wolgarston High School

Two students from Wolgarston High School in Penkridge were today awarded Central Borders Housing Group’s (CBHG) Design Challenge trophies for exceptional work and teacher Carol East was presented with a cheque for £250 for the school.

Wolgarston’s year 10s were issued with the challenge of designing a room as part of their GCSE Design and Technology course work. Staff from CBHG, which has sponsored the project, took the 18 interested students to the association’s showpiece development of 29 executive apartments in Cannock and invited them to choose a room to design.

The students were asked to choose a room in any apartment in the scheme and develop an interior design, taking into account necessary furniture placement. From the initial concept they then researched fabrics and finishes, designing specific elements of the room, from bedspreads to blinds to wall decorations.
Speaking for the Housing Group, Chief Executive Debbie Griffiths explained: “The quality of the work is really inspiring and we are very pleased to have been able to encourage such a talented group of people.”

As part of the project – and counting towards their overall GCSE grade – each student has produced a folder showing the design process, samples and drawings. CBHG and it’s founding housing association – South Staffordshire Housing Association - will examine the folders and choose one idea which they, in collaboration with the budding designer, will develop for use in a show home when the properties go on sale later this year.

The development is for sale under shared-ownership arrangements, aimed at first time buyers and those on lower incomes or with no equity. Buyers can invest in a share of the property, ranging from 25-75%, and pay rent on the remainder. When their circumstances change, buyers can increase the bought element of their home until they own it outright. The scheme makes home ownership a possibility even in the face of a credit-crunch.

Debbie Griffiths added: “The design challenge has been such a success that we are running it again with this year’s GCSE students. The students are able to work on a real project in the real world, with exceptional work being recognised and developed for use. At the same time as supporting our local community school, it enables us to explain concepts like shared-ownership to the next generation of home seekers.”

(Released 22nd July 2008)