As your landlord, Family Mosaic provides you with services to help maintain your homes.

Many of you will know that we employ separate contractors to carry out repairs and maintenance works on our behalf. We have arrangements with these contractors that are known as ‘partnering’ contracts.

Partnering contracts are usually valid for a number of years. The partnering contracts that we currently have are due to be renewed in Autumn 2009. The process has started where we are looking for contractors to apply officially to become a Family Mosaic partnering contractor.

The contractor(s) we choose will need to demonstrate they can provide the most efficient repairs and maintenance service to our residents.

This page will be updated regularly over the next year, so if you are interested, please keep checking for all the latest information or email us.

November update

Things continue to go well on our programme for setting up the new our repairs and maintenance contracts that need to replace our existing contracts on 1st July next year.

With the help of four tenants from our customer panel we have recently assessed quality applications from the long-list of 12 contractors and now have a short-list of the best six contractors that will be providing us with competitive tenders by mid-January.

The four tenant representatives will once again assist in assessing the tender submissions and will also be involved in interviews and visits to each contractors offices and other contracts they have. This will allow us to identify the successful contractors by early March that will be followed by the lead-in period for a start on the 1st July 2010.

Summer update

The process of re-newing repairs and maintenance contracts is going well. Our current contracts are on course to end next year and the tendering process for the new contracts is moving at a fast pace. We have a firm aim to make sure that we work with the best contractors to provide you with a 3-star repairs and maintenance service.

Here is a summary of what we have done so far in the programme:

• We consulted with over 900 residents through the Customer Panel on what improvements they most wanted to see from the new contracts.
• We established a Tenant Procurement Panel of 16 residents from across the Family Mosaic Group including its subsidiaries. We consult and work with this group on a regular basis to make sure our customers have a voice within the contractor selection process.
• We have completed the first stage in the selection process, involving tenants from the Procurement Panel, to establish a ‘long-list’ of 12 contractors.
• We have conducted dialogue sessions with each of the 12 contractors, on the different operating options and how many contractors we should have across the London region.
• Members of the Tenant Procurement Panel were involved in many of the sessions and our joint findings will help to shape the future contracts and delivery of the service.
• We are now going to test the solutions that the contractors can offer to reach a final list of 6 tenderers.

The final tenders will be submitted before the end of 2009. The final selection and approval will take place in early February 2010. The new contracts will start on 1 July 2010.

Resident involvement in the future of your repairs service

The process of choosing new partner contractors is called ‘procurement’. At Family Mosaic, we’ve named this process the Procurement Project 2009. To make this project successful and ensure that we have the best possible contractors, we’re making sure that our residents are involved at all stages.

We’re delighted with the results of the first two stages of resident involvement and consultation.

Survey to Customer Panel

Firstly, we sent a survey to our 900 members of the Customer Panel, asking them what they would like to see in our repairs service in the future. The survey was made up of 16 different statements/repairs topics which we asked our Customer Panel to rate in order of importance.

We received 250 completed surveys and it was interesting to see the results and the top five statements/repairs topics:

1. I want to see an improvement in the quality of repairs work. For example:
   - Good workmanship and materials
   - Be suitably qualified
   - Be careful in my home
   - See the job through to completion
2. I expect staff answering the phone to be capable of accurately logging my repair. I would expect them to be knowledgeable and competent.
3. I expect the contractor to maintain the same high standards of Family Mosaic when I speak to them, by phone, in writing or any other communication.
4. Following an inspection by a surveyor, I want to be told what actions are going to take place next. I also want to be told if Family Mosaic decide that no action is to take place.
5. I want an appointment that’s convenient for me and I want the contractor to keep that appointment.

The top five statements, and many more, will be used as part of the new contracts. Contractors that are applying to work with us and as part of their application, will be answering a series of questions. A lot of these questions will ask them to demonstrate how they meet our criteria (needs and requirements).

For example, taking statement one, we’ll ask the contractors how they can demonstrate good workmanship or what qualifications their workforce have.

Thank you to those of you that completed the survey.

Procurement Panel

Following the survey, we held the first resident involvement meeting of Procurement 2009. We were overwhelmed by the turnout as all of the 17 residents invited, attended the session on the evening of Thursday 26 February.

The purpose of the session was to discuss how the panel would like to be involved and what they would like to see in their repairs service in the future.

We asked the panel if they agreed with the top five statements from the survey and held an open discussion about the other points – and a few new topics were suggested.

It was great to see the levels of interest from you. All who attended agreed to take part in the ongoing consultation on procurement and to form to the ‘Procurement Panel’.

The next stage of customer consultation will be taking place soon…keep checking back to this page for further details.