Happy residents, happy homes

One-stop shop

Harrow Council

Location: Harrow, north-west London
Target: To achieve cost savings and increase resident satisfaction through a single contractor model

Last year, the London Borough of Harrow began a scheduled programme to replace the kitchens and bathrooms in its sheltered housing blocks. The contract was won by Durkan, which also re-secured the contract for the ongoing work in 2015/16. Prices were kept at the same level as the previous year - a real terms saving, based on building cost inflation, of around 6%. Durkan also bid for, and won, a contract to carry out similar works on some of Harrow’s general needs housing, as well as an additional contract to carry out enveloping work on a separate site.

Value for money and a full order book is good news for both organisations. It is the efficiencies that can be realised through having multiple contracts with the same client, coupled with a strong relationship between both parties, that have also benefited the most important stakeholder group: local residents.

“For us it’s about good, robust contract management,” says Andrew Campion, planned investment manager at Harrow Council. “Durkan has come to the table with a pro-active partnership approach - they have been very receptive to new ideas, working with us to achieve maximum value for money. They are delivering the goods for us on these contracts and Harrow, for their part, have provided a clear, direct client approach to the work.”

Following consultations between the borough and residents, Durkan installed new communal kitchen facilities in one of the sheltered blocks, installed a new flat-screen TV for elderly residents and redecorated their communal lounge, all in readiness for their festive get-together at the end of the year.

The benefit of working together hasn’t just benefited the Harrow residents receiving the improvements. The contracts have also delivered local apprenticeships and employment - half of Durkan’s contracted staff are from the borough - as well as sponsorship of local events, such as Harrow’s Heroes and Harrow in Bloom.

As Mr Campion puts it: “Developing a strategic partnership with Durkan has enabled all parties to deliver a really good deal for residents, and helps us work towards our goal of building a better Harrow.”

Personal touch

Resident liaison officer

Location: Harrow, north-west London
Target: Ensuring residents are kept informed

Large refurbishment contracts are a balancing act. The client and contractor want to get the work done on time and within budget - but the most important stakeholders are the residents, whose day-to-day lives can be turned upside down. Keeping them happy, informed and onside is crucial.

Enter the resident liaison officers (RLOs). “We are a huge part of the job,” says Kim Leahy, 31. She is an RLO in the London Borough of Harrow, where Durkan has a contract to refurbish the council’s sheltered housing blocks.

“We become more than a point of contact. We become part of the [residents’] family,” says Ms Leahy. “We make sure they understand what’s going on; we’ve got time if they want to sit down and have a chat. If you start getting problems, that’s when the work starts being delayed - and that has a knock-on effect on the rest of the project,” continues Ms Leahy. “When everything remains on programme, the residents are happy. If the residents are happy, we are happy.”

Ms Leahy and her colleagues are always ready to go the extra mile. In Harrow, the RLOs were behind the refurbishment of a communal lounge. “We painted it, and gave them a new TV,” says Ms Leahy. “And we’re going to give them a little party for Christmas.”

RLOs are constantly undergoing training at Durkan in everything from first aid to management, IT, energy efficiency, and how to work with the most vulnerable residents - and their care and attention carries on after the last bathroom has been installed. “We will spend time explaining how to use the new shower or their new boiler,” Ms Leahy explains.

She likes to sit down with residents for a chat after work has been completed. “We keep everyone happy,” Ms Leahy says. “We’re the nice people on site!”

Gaining trust

Durkan

Location: South London
Target: To deliver refurbishments on time and to budget by prioritising relationships with residents

Keeping to budgets can be hard enough on large projects - and an even greater challenge is maintaining standards while adding value when those budgets begin to shrink. This has been the case on a huge estate refurbishment project in south London, where the client had to cut its costs by 30%.

Despite this significant hurdle, close partnership working meant Durkan has been able to both deliver the client’s original aspirations for the scheme and still add value in the process.

“We had to look at ways of reducing the budget,” says Jonathan Rees, senior architect at HTA, who has been working on the scheme since 2008. “We worked closely with the client and Durkan to look at each aspect of the design.

We started from scratch in terms of what we could keep, what was worth saving… what could we use that was already there?”

It was determined that around a third of the roofs could be overhauled rather than replaced. Durkan overhauled its supply chain, too, changing its kitchen manufacturer and working with planners to determine where uPVC windows could be installed instead of aluminium ones.

The landscaping was totally redesigned by HTA, in consultation with Durkan, the client, the planning authorities and local residents, to make use of existing features while maintaining the quality of product and finish originally set out by the client.

These savings and adjustments also ensured an additional critical element of work could be added into the scheme; during the surveys and by reviewing maintenance records, condensation was established as a significant problem on the estate. Through the savings identified and by tapping into ECO and Green Deal Cashback funding for the client, internal wall insulation was installed in every tenanted property. This has eradicated condensation, significantly improved living conditions and helped combat fuel poverty with fuel bill savings of up to 40%.

The project also provided additional benefits for the local community. Durkan employed local apprentices and a local resident as an assistant resident liaison officer and translator as well as hosting many community initiatives.

“It is a close-working team,” says Mr Rees. “Feedback has been positive and the aspirations and objectives for the project are being achieved within budget.”

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