Sanctuary is ‘letting its tenants down’

A short-notice inspection by the Audit Commission of Sanctuary Midlands found its repairs and customer services at its 10,000 homes were below standard. It found more weaknesses than strengths in five of the six areas that it inspected.

There was a marked difference in the quality of repairs provided by the housing association’s own staff to that provided by contractors used by Sanctuary. The inspectors also said Sanctuary was failing to measure customer satisfaction around empty homes and gas servicing. More than 200 gas safety checks had been late.

The inspectors praised Sanctuary for its in-house maintenance service.

Nick Baldwin, Sanctuary Group chair, said: ‘As a first step we have already begun the process of consultation with residents in the region and staff, addres-sing the points highlighted in the report, and we will be working closely with our Regional Resident Forum and the Tenant Services Authority going forward.’