Delivering improvements to your home

Every year we spend money on our homes to maintain them and make them safe. Last year our contractors successfully delivered improvements to almost 1500 homes at a total cost of just over £13.5 million. We also maintained a 100% Decent Homes status, meaning our properties are in a reasonable state of repair and have modern facilities and services.

Improvements included the renewal of kitchens and bathrooms, along with the installation of new central heating systems all of which contribute to greener homes and reduced energy costs. We also made an investment into homes with much-needed adaptations to ensure that customers can live independently within a safe environment.

We know the importance of family life and we were delighted to be able to help bring Malcolm Horrocks and his family together. Malcolm and his son Aaron, who suffers from autism and ADHD, have been reunited and are able to live together thanks to the work we carried out in partnership with Blackpool Council.

Their Blackpool home has been adapted to allow Aaron to live with his dad, an outcome that has helped Malcolm on his own recovery journey. The 46-year-old went into rehabilitation in 2016 to deal with his addiction following the break down of the family unit. His son Aaron went into care a year later as the family battled with mental health issues.

Once out of rehab, Malcolm reconnected with Aaron and the support services to rebuild his relationship with his son. Their relationship blossomed and Malcolm decided he wanted to bring Aaron home. But given Aaron’s condition, his home wasn’t suitable or safe in its current condition, despite being a new build.

So together with Blackpool Council and other partners, we helped to remodel his home by putting up stud walls that enclose the kitchen and fitting special doors to keep Aaron safe. The staircase was also enclosed to make it impossible for Aaron to get over the bannister which was a potential danger. New doors were also fitted at the top of the stairs, with special raised handles so that access to the staircase could be controlled and also special handles on the windows.

Once this work had been completed, the partners worked with the family to organise visits, then overnight stays to help Aaron settle into his hew home and family life with his dad.

Now Malcolm and Aaron live happily together in a safe environment. Here’s what Malcolm had to say on the adaptations we made:

“I can’t thank Great Places and all the other organisations enough for everything they have done for us. From the moment I went into rehabilitation, I knew I wanted to try and provide a normal life for Aaron, but I couldn’t have done it with the problems I had. But I’ve worked through them and, with help; I’ve reconnected with my family and rebuilt my relationship with Aaron.

“Having Aaron here has changed our lives completely; the changes that have been made will help to keep Aaron safe while allowing him to live a normal life. I can’t put into words what this means to us.”