Russet and Mears celebrate first anniversary

Published by Barbara H for Russet Homes in Housing and also in Communities, Education, Environment, Local Government

Russet and Mears enjoyed a buffet breakfast to mark their first anniversary of working together to give residents speedier repairs and reduce the time it takes to prepare empty properties ready to let.

 Russet, part of Circle Anglia, owns and manages over 6700 properties ranging from one bedroom flats to four bedroom houses and is the largest provider of social housing within the Tonbridge and Malling areas. There has also recently been significant development activity in Dartford, Maidstone and Medway. 

 Mears was awarded a five year contract to deliver its day to day maintenance and void works and one year on, resident satisfaction with the service is at a high with 99% of jobs undertaken within time and 95% of residents satisfied with the overall service.

 Mears operate locally from an office in Tonbridge and in the first year dealt successfully with over 20,000 repairs requests, mostly by telephone to a designated call centre.  Customer care standards are particularly high and Mears and other partnering contractor staff qualify for recognition within the Russet monthly service awards scheme and an annual scheme sponsored by Circle Anglia.

Anthony Cross, Russet Operations Director (Asset Management) said: “One year on and we are delighted Mears have raised the bar on already excellent service delivery and have achieved this within demanding financial parameters.  An excellent foundation has been laid for a strong and lasting partnership and we look forward to working with Mears and our residents to further develop excellent local repairs services”.