Spring 2015 Residents praised for standing up to anti-social behaviour See page 7 Also inside: Get ready for Universal Credit Page 5 Job project launched in Newtown Page 14 Come to our first festival Back page Contents Young volunteers rewarded 3 Get ready for smart meters 4 Welcome to the Get 1, 2, 3 ready for Universal Credit 5 Where are our new homes? 6 Barry residents praised for standing spring edition up to anti-social behaviour 7 Would you like to help run Newydd? 8 of In View Beware of fake websites 9 Our Barry development is named 10 Our development wins an award! 11 magazine! My Home Insurance 12 Treasures buried 13 About us Job project launches in Newtown 14 We put our tenants and customers Neath Port Talbot residents, first in all we do. We are a charitable have your say! 15 housing association with nearly 3,000 What a difference your quality homes for rent and sale in mid involvement makes 16 and south Wales. Is your home out of order? 18 Newydd in bloom 2015 19 New Welsh Government service 20 Wel sh Language Scheme Newydd is 27th best place to work 21 We have a We lsh Language Scheme approve Opportunities for young people 22 d by the former Welsh Language B A feast of fruit and veg 23 oard. The scheme and monitorin Free cinema dazzles 24 g report is available on request and also in I’m not happy with Newydd, the ‘Library’ section of our website. O ur website is now fully what can I do? 25 bilingual. Have you had a change in your circumstances? 26 Different formats of In V What not to flush 27 iew If you require In View magazine in other languages or formats, including Welsh, Braille, large font or on CD or tape then this is available on request by contacting Mared Williams on 02920 005412 or email [email protected]. You are also able to use our Language Line service to speak to someone in your preferred language. Please contact Newydd by calling 0303 040 1998. 02 newydd housing Young volunteers rewarded What a fantastic night we had at Newydd and Hafod Housing Associations’ 5th Annual Youth Awards ceremony which took place on 18th February 2015 at Pontypridd Rugby Club. Over 70 young people attended the evening and managed a youth programme and which celebrated the fantastic achievements community cinema project in Rhydyfelin, of hard-working and inspiring young volunteers see articles on pages 22 and 24. and their youth groups over the past year. A special mention went to Amy Benjamin, ou all, Morgan Benjamin, Ben Davies, Jessica Price, Well done to y d Eirianedd Rees-Jones, Teleri Rees-Jones, we hope you enjoye Joel Sage, Kurt Sealey, Lewis Jones, Brandon cial evening. Baker and Chelsea Davies who have set up your spe www.facebook.com/newydd 03 Get ready for smart meters Over the next few years everyone will be offered a free gas and electricity smart meter. This is so that you can see how much energy you are using at that moment in time and what it will cost. Your energy usage will be sent immediately to your supplier. You won’t receive estimated bills anymore, your energy supplier won’t need to take a manual meter reading and it will be easier for you to change energy suppliers. Smart meters will be installed across all homes, starting at the end of 2015. To find out more go to www.gov.uk and search for smart meters. Join HelpU to save 55% or £250 on your water bills Welsh Water has created a new tariff for social housing tenants that may struggle to pay their water and sewerage bills. This new tariff, called ‘HelpU’, will target customers on a total household income of £12,500 a year or less and will offer savings every year of up to 55% or £250 on the average household bill for water and sewerage services. It’s been developed with help from CCWater (independent consumer watchdog) and key partners such as Community Housing Cymru. The new tariff will be launched in April 2015. Any customers living in households on low income are eligible to apply for ‘HelpU’. If you are interested go to www.dwrcymru.com and search for HelpU and fill in the form to apply or call 0800 052 0145. 04 newydd housing Get 1, 2, 3 ready for Universal Credit The UK Government is changing the way people receive their benefits. Many benefits are being phased out and replaced by Universal Credit. Tenants living in the Vale of Glamorgan and Rhondda Cynon Taff will be affected from December 2015. What is different about Universal Credit? u Universal Credit will be paid directly into your bank account u You’ll get one monthly payment for your whole household u Any help you get with your rent will be included in your payment u You’ll have to pay your rent yourself u You will need to claim online Three things that you can do now to get ready for it. Get the right bank account • Choose an account that lets you receive payments e.g. bank, building society or credit union as this is how Universal Credit will be paid. • Set up Direct Debits for important bills like your rent, gas and electricity. • Decide whether you need a joint account as you and your partner will get one payment for both of you. Draw up a budget • Use a budget planner, list all your income and outgoings. • Prioritise your rent payment, you’ll be paying it yourself. • Get ready for monthly payments. Get online • Get access to a computer connected to the internet, you need to claim Universal Credit online. If you don’t have one ask your Jobcentre, pop into your local library or speak to Newydd for advice. • Sign up to a training course if you are worried about your IT skills. Come to a Newydd computer course, call Scott Tandy on 02920 005479 or 07584501216. • Being online gives you access to ways of saving money, from cheaper energy tariffs to money off vouchers. We will be running a series of open days over the summer. If you would like to speak to us about paying your rent or Universal Credit before this time please call our Rent Team on 0303 040 1998. @newyddhousing 05 Former Marine Hotel, Barry Island Our new homes Canon Street, Aberdare Channel Heights, Rhoose Point Old Caerphilly Road, Nantgarw, Rhondda Gileston Road, St Athan, Vale of Glamorgan: Cynon Taf: Our development of 8 apartments, Construction of 23 homes on the former called Ffordd y Felin, is due to complete in May. station yard at St Athan is now underway. Our contractors, Jehu Project Services, Canon Street, Aberdare: Great progress is started work in December 2014 and it is being made on our development of the former hoped tenants will move in December 2015. Bingo Hall. The development of 15 new homes together with 3,401 square foot of Channel Heights, Rhoose Point, Vale of retail space will be ready in June 2015. An Glamorgan: Newydd are working with Taylor open day for local people has recently taken Wimpey UK on 21 new homes here, some of place at the scheme. which will be for sale under a low cost home ownership scheme and some for affordable Former Marine Hotel, Barry Island, Vale of rent, available from October 2015. To register Glamorgan: This refurbishment of the former your interest call our Development Team on hotel is due to finish in June 2015. After a 0303 040 1998. competition to name the 20 new apartments, Ger-y-Môr by Lisa Wallace from Newland Street, Barry, was chosen. She wins £50 for her effort! Barry Island Primary School has recently visited the scheme and buried a time capsule, see story page 13. 06 newydd housing g Barry residents praised for standin up to anti-social behaviour Residents in Maes-yr-Ysgol, Barry have been praised for standing up to anti-social behaviour. Tanya Sobey subjected her neighbours and Bottomer through the sequence of incidents other residents to serious and persistent anti- and on raising court action, successfully social behaviour, causing harassment, alarm obtained an order at Cardiff County Court. and distress in the local community. Joint working between residents, Newydd and All four tenants were presented with thank you South Wales Police resulted in Tanya Sobey gifts and flowers for their bravery by Housing being removed from her property. Officer Robert Kidd (3rd from left) and Anti- Social Behaviour Coordinator Hayley Nunns Louise Bottomer and her 11 year old son Calum (3rd from right) from Newydd. (above left) lived next door to Ms Sobey and had suffered frequent disturbances with drunken Hayley said visitors to the house, resulting in a catalogue , “We would like to thank Louise, Calum, Jef of incidents. f and Jacqueline and praise them for their courage in standing up to the p erpetrator of anti-social behaviour. By Louise said, contacting th “It has been like a living e Police during every incident . and recording each event, w hell but now we can live our lives again e were able to d take Tanya Sobey to Court. W We’ve had so much support from Newyd e are determined to make our neighbourhoods and the Police, I would recommend to safer and we will provide support to any of ou anyone to report any problems to the r tenants.” e Police and their landlord, the support w had was amazing.” To report anti-social behaviour call 0303 040 Jeff Griffiths and his wife Jacqueline (above 1998, email [email protected] or visit right) were also witness to and suffered from www.newydd.co.uk.