Asset management
We have a relatively modern stock of homes, most of which are conventional houses and flats of traditional construction. They are in relatively good condition and have benefitted from well-organised cyclical repairs, so that the current Decent Homes Standard is met.
However, the challenges facing Asset Management, not just at Paradigm but for the sector, have never been greater. We need homes that meet the needs of our customers, are financially viable, safe and sustainable for the future.
Our asset management strategy sets out our aims to:
Provide safe homes
We have good, well-established regimes for ensuring the safety of our homes and we’ll continue to manage, deliver and review these to drive zero failure performance. We have very few higher risk residential buildings in our stock but still need to make sure our approach to building safety meets the planned new regulatory regime. A key task will be providing more accessible information to residents and improved ways for them to raise safety concerns.
Make our homes and businesses environmentally sustainable
Our new asset management strategy includes plans to reduce the carbon emissions of our homes to net zero by 2050, accessing government backed funding wherever possible. We’ll also have a sustainability strategy to consider wider factors, such as how we mitigate the effects of extreme weather on our buildings and how we can contribute to reducing fuel poverty amongst our residents.
Use data to improve our decision making
We’ll make sure we have data on our assets that is complete, reliable, detailed and well structured, so that we can invest our resources in a data driven way.
Optimise our assets to provide more for customers
This includes continuing to deliver value for money investment programmes on our existing homes, that support our net zero carbon goal and maintain our financial viability. We need to regularly assess our assets to ensure they are performing to their potential and supporting our customer’s needs.
It also means making sure new affordable homes are future-proofed to meet standards for environmental performance.
Make sure we have the right resources to deliver
We need to recruit people with the right specialist skills and experience, as well as developing the skills we’ll need in the future from within the business. We will expand and reorganise our Property Directorate, to provide the range of coordinated and professional functions needed to deliver our strategy. Our transformation programme will help make sure we have improved systems and processes that support our goals, demonstrating a commitment to the efficient and progressive management of our homes and estates.
Create alliances that benefit our customers
Our stock swap with The Guinness Partnership will enable us to better concentrate our resources and provide value for money services for residents. We’ll continue to pursue opportunities to collaborate with other landlords where this might bring better returns for residents and the environment. We’ll also work with our Development team and our partners to ensure new homes fit the objectives of our Asset Management Strategy.
Our 5 year strategy targets
How we're doing so far
Our progress against this strategy
At March 2023:
Decent Homes Standard: We hit a 99.97% compliance rate with the Decent Homes Standard. A few homes fall short due to their age and thermal rating, but we’re on track with plans to bring them up to standard.
Energy efficiency: We’ve ramped up our data on energy efficiency. Now, 73.3% of our homes meet an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) C rating, up from 69.9% last year. The average SAP rating also rose from 72.23 to 73.29. We’ve got plans to boost the energy efficiency of 500 homes out of the 3,800 below EPC C in 2023/24.
Compliance rates: We achieved 99.93% compliance in domestic gas, hitting 100% in gas, electrical, and Fire Risk Assessment (FRA) compliance for communal areas.
Repairs satisfaction: The satisfaction with repairs climbed to 83%, surpassing the year’s target of 78%. We’re aiming for 85% by the end of our Corporate Plan in 2026.
Paradigm On Track: We introduced Paradigm On Track, a mobile app updating customers about appointments. It tracks our team’s journey, gives arrival times, and even lets customers provide details about access to the technician. This has slashed missed appointments by about 25% and reduced calls to our Contact Centre. Customers love it, giving an average 4.6 out of 5 satisfaction rating (89.8%) across 3,679 responses.