Coronavirus (COVID-19) Updates

Housing maintenance and repairs

11 May 2022

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Please note we are continuing to deliver non-essential maintenance works, however due to the current upsurge in COVID-19 cases staff shortages may cause delays and cancellations to appointments at short notice.

We thank you for your patience at this time.

Report a repair

If you currently have an appointment booked for repair that we are unable to carry out due to the restrictions, our staff will be in contact with you to re-arrange this at a time to suit you.

Help us help you

Our workforce are all doing their best to comply with physical distancing rules but we also need your help too, to keep you, your household and our workforce safe. 

While our team are in your house please comply with physical distancing. This means keeping a comfortable distance apart, and where possible we would appreciate if you and all other members of the household stay in another room while we carry out your repairs. This is to protect you and others and keep everyone safe.

We thank you for your care and consideration.

If you have symptoms or are self-isolating

If you or are a member of your household is experiencing coronavirus symptoms or self-isolating it is important that you let us know when you call.  If the repair is routine and is not a risk to your safety or the integrity of your home, please wait and report the repair once your symptoms or period of self-isolation are over.   

We will continue to provide emergency repairs service under these circumstances.

When our operative arrives to carry out your repair it is important that you let us know if your circumstances have changed since you reported the repair and you or a member of the household are now experiencing coronavirus symptoms or self-isolating.  We can still arrange for trained staff to carry out emergency repairs.

This is to protect you and others and keep everyone safe. We thank you for your care and consideration.

Please let us know if you have any concerns about work taking place.

Repairs inspections

To limit face to face contact we have changed the way we carry out our repairs inspections. If we need to inspect your repair before we carry out the work, our staff will ask you for your phone number and give you a time when we will call you back.  

When we call you back please give us as much information as possible about your repair, including pictures if possible.  We can also use Whatsapp for video calling if that is suitable.

If we are unable to diagnose the repair in this way we will make an appointment to attend at a time to suit you when we are able to.

How did we do?

Once we've finished your repair a member of our team will contact you to carry out a short survey. We would appreciate your feedback as we use this information to improve our service. 

We provide a 24 hour repairs service to our tenants. The main aims of the service are to:

  • respond quickly to reports of disrepair
  • provide a value for money service
  • make sure the timescales for repairs are clear and are met
  • deliver a service that is flexible and reflects customers needs
  • meet legal obligations

Housing improvement programme

We also run a Housing Improvement Programme of ongoing maintenance which specifically deals with improving homes over a period of time and relates to works such as window replacement and central heating upgrades. The programme is planned in advance every year.

You will be notified if your home is going to be included in any of the programmes or you can check what work is planned for your home in any of our neighbourhood housing offices.

Council or tenant responsibility

The responsibility for repairs to Council houses is shared between the Council and the tenant.

We are responsible for maintaining the fabric and permanent fittings of the building, while the tenant is responsible for internal decoration and removable fittings. If you are unsure please ask your Housing Officer or contact the repairs helpline.

In cases where the tenant has caused damage to the house which is then reported as a repair, we will usually do the repair but the tenant will be asked to pay for the work.

Reporting a housing repair

You can telephone our repairs line on 01563 555555 or report a housing repair online:

Report a housing repair

You will be asked for your name, address, and the nature of the repair. You will also need to tell us when we can get access to your home.

In most cases we won’t need to inspect the repair first and you will be offered an appointment for the repair to be carried out. If we do need to carry out an inspection you will be offered an appointment.

Emergency out of hours

If you need to report a repair outwith office hours please contact our emergency helpline on 0345 724 0000.

Repairs timescales

The timescale depends on the type of repair. To help us deal with the most urgent repairs first we have three timescales that cover all types of repairs.

Emergency - within two hours

Emergency repairs are classed as 'turn up and make safe' where we will remove the cause of the emergency immediately.

Urgent (priority) - within 24 hours

Urgent priority repairs are where the welfare of the resident or the fabric of the property could be compromised if left unattended.

Loss or partial loss of heating or hot water (where no alternative is available) is deemed a qualifying repair under the right to repair legislation. We are required to respond to the repair by the end of the next working day following the date that the repair was reported.

Urgent (non-priority) - within three working days

Urgent repairs with lower priority where immediate fixes are not applicable but when failure to attend to the defect could result in a fairly rapid deterioration of the fabric of the building or where the convenience of the tenant is significantly compromised.

Routine - within agreed timescale

Routine maintenance addresses the more routine repair and maintenance work and is appointed to be carried out within one of two timescales:

  • 25 working  days
  • 50 working  days

Any other tasks, for example, those with weather dependency or requiring to be grouped to form a programme of work, are likely to be treated over longer periods and normally within 50 working days. Tenants will be notified when the repair has been programmed and with a date that the work will be carried out.

Right to repair

Under the Right to Repair Housing (Scotland) Act 2001, Scottish secure tenants and short Scottish secure tenants have the right to have small urgent repairs carried out by East Ayrshire Council within a given timescale. This is called the Right to Repair scheme and it applies to all tenants.

Contact Information

 

Housing Repairs
Holmquarry House
1b Holmquarry Road
Kilmarnock
KA1 4DA
Telephone: 01563 555555
Emergency Helpline: 0345 724 0000 (local rate)
Email: