Puddletown Crescent
Housing for older people with some special design features and good facilities
Who is it for? | People over the age of 60 years wanting to rent. |
Property details | Puddletown Crescent has 35 self-contained flats on the ground and first floor, 20 have their own private entrance (externally accessed) the other 15 are situated within the main building. 32 of the flats are one bedroom, 2 have two bedrooms and 1 has three bedrooms. All 35 flats are large enough for couples. Puddletown Crescent can receive cable TV and has a concessionary TV licence for those people that have lived there for more than 5 years. All new residents must buy their own TV licence. All the flats have Gas central heating. Puddletown Cres has recently been fitted with a brand new intercom system that is now much quicker at answering emergency calls. It also gives the opportunity of wearing the emergency pendant on a wrist strap as opposed to round the neck, which seems to be more favourable. Each resident is responsible for their day-to-day bills ie water, gas and electric. Flats are a reasonable size and each flat has good space for storage. Puddletown Crescent is owned by the Borough of Poole and managed by Poole Housing Partnership, (PHP) the Council's Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO). PHP manages all the Council's homes and is based in Poole. |
Where is it? | Puddletown Crescent is fairly close to a large supermarket and shops and is on the main bus route to Poole town centre and local towns. There are two GPs close by. There is a local church, which is within walking distance. There is also a Leisure Centre a few minutes walk away. |
What is it for? | It aims to give people good housing and that little bit of support so they can carry on living independently. A member of staff, whose job title is Sheltered Housing Officer, is available either on site or contactable by telephone from the Control Centre if a problem arises, during normal working hours Monday to Friday. A large part of the Sheltered Housing Officer's job is to support tenants. |
Right to occupy | People living in Puddletown Crescent have a legal agreement to live there and details are set out in Secure Tenancy Agreements between them and PHP. |
How to get it? | Only people who need housing can apply. People thinking about moving will be asked why they need to move. They have to give their reasons on an application form. The Borough of Poole operates a Choice-based lettings Scheme called Homechoice: when a flat becomes vacant it is advertised and applicants can 'bid' for it. They would usually go to the person or couple who need it most of those bidding. The most common reasons for needing to move are: Someone is finding it difficult to manage where they live now because they need housing on one level, or
Anyone interested in wanting to move to Puddletown Crescent must be on Poole Council Housing Register. |
What is provided? Facilities | There is a communal lounge room that all tenants can use if they want to have more space for parties, get-togethers or meetings. It is bright and sunny. There is the Loop system available in the communal hall for those that wear hearing aids. There is a disabled toilet for those that need it. There is also a communal laundry, which has washing and drying facilities. There are communal drying areas for those who like to hang their washing outside. PHP have provided water butts and composters for the residents use. There is parking near to the scheme, which is shared with people that live in the estate nearby. The local mobile library calls regularly so that residents can go and choose a book and not have to carry it too far. |
Services | Puddletown Cres has three main services. They are:
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Standards | There are standards covering all of the services that are provided at Puddletown Crescent and people who live there have copies of the standards they can expect. PHP is always keen to make sure that work is done to good standards. |
Relationship with the local community | Puddletown Crescent is part of the local community and people living there take part in activities in the local area. Social events are held at Puddletown Crescent and local people are invited to attend. |
Staffing and expertise | Puddletown Crescent staff includes the Sheltered Housing Officer and cleaning staff. The SHO has been trained to give advice on the kinds of help and support that are available. The SHO also has first aid training. |
Complaints and other matters | Anyone living at Puddletown Crescent can expect to be treated with courtesy at all times. Everyone moving into Puddletown Crescent is given a handbook that explains what they should do if they are not happy with a service. Complaints are taken seriously and staff aim to put matters right if possible. |
Costs to you | Many people who are on low incomes qualify for Housing Benefit to cover all or some of the rent. Some people also get almost all of their service and support costs met. Our staff can help work out what people would pay before they move. |
Value for money | Communal heating charges will vary from scheme to scheme. Our charges compare well with rents and charges for similar housing for older people in Poole. |
Want to know more? | Please contact Viv Custard Sheltered Housing Officer on 01202 604439 or email v.custard@poole.gov.uk |
What it feels like to live at Puddletown Crescent from a service user's view | We have lived in our flat for just over 3 years, we love our flat and it is convenient as our children live close by. We are local to the shops and we have a good bus route in to town. It is very reassuring to have the intercom system when we are not well, it is good to know that someone is there if we need them to help us. Everyone in our block gets on well with each other, so it feels like we have our own little community. We enjoy living at Puddletown Crescent as do our neighbours. Sue & Alan |