An inspector called Katie
If you’ve ever had a repair carried out at your home, the chances are you will have met one of our inspectors.
We have 10 of them based around the borough, and they will visit you to take a look at what needs fixing and making arrangements for the work to be carried out.
One of our inspectors is Katie, and we caught up with her to find out a bit more about what the job involves:
Originally part of our contact centre team taking tenants’ phone calls, Katie decided she wanted a more hands on approach to helping them with their issues, so made the leap over to our repairs team, to become a trainee inspector. Now two years on, and promoted to inspector, she says the customer service background she has from working in the contact centre helps her in this job:
“Being an excellent communicator is vital. We’re going into people’s homes and, depending on the nature of the job, we could be there a while. Therefore, it’s important we can clearly explain to the tenant what we’re going to do and address any concerns they may have.
“For me, meeting different people is one of the highlights of the job. Dealing with people’s homes means there is a lot of pressure to get things right, including whether to classify a job as non-urgent, urgent or an emergency.
“We’re also alert for any non-repairs issues that may be affecting the tenant. If, for instance, we notice they have mobility issues or they mention money worries, then we can offer to refer them on to the specialist teams we have in Tai Tarian for further help.”
With mould, damp and condensation problems in social housing being in the news recently, how does Katie
deal with the issue?
“When someone phones in to report some suspected mould or damp in their home, I will visit them and conduct a damp inspection to diagnose what exactly the problem is.
"I’ll check if the trickle vents and extractor fans are working properly and that the radiators are doing their job efficiently. I will also systematically move throughout the property and take humidity readings using a
hygrometer thermometer, this will indicate a percentage of the water vapour in the air.
“If mould is present then we will work with the tenant whilst also issuing the repair required to combat the condensation and high humidity issues. In 99% of cases, the best way to prevent mould growth and condensation is through heating and ventilation.
“Purely from a property maintenance point of view it is extremely important to use your central heating when it is required, the recommended temperature to heat your property is no lower than 18°C. Having said that, we do appreciate that with high energy costs at the moment, this may be difficult for some of our tenants, so it is a delicate balancing act.”
Katie finds the job a very rewarding one:
“I know it’s a cliché, but no two days are the same, and each job I attend will be different.
"I love being out and about in the community, meeting lots of people. It is really satisfying helping to fix their problems and making sure they have a functioning roof over their head.”
