Residents get an extra helping hand during Property Maintenance Week
Nov 27, 2013Emanuel Whittaker has been using National Property Maintenance Week as the perfect excuse to carry out numerous small jobs for residents and provide general property advice.
Contracts Director John Gallagher said: “We are already renowned for our customer service and we thought we would really push the boat out during Property Maintenance Week. Our on site teams have responded very generously to our appeal to help out residents in need.”
The company’s teams team carried out dozens of jobs such as re-hanging an internal door for a Rochdale Boroughwide Housing resident, putting up new window blinds for a City West Housing resident, re-setting a Salix Homes resident’s boiler, hanging winter flower baskets for a Contour Homes resident and a challenge for a Your Housing Group tenant which involved a whole team across several hours.
John said: “Mrs Hannah Igo is 84 and has arthritis which greatly affects her mobility. Her husband who looked after the garden died 10 years ago however, the decking and gazebo which he had built had fallen into such a state of disrepair it had become too dangerous to walk on.
“Mrs Igo casually mentioned to the team how she avoided going into the garden because of the slippery decking and so a team completely removed the decking and gazebo frame to provide her with safe access to the garden again.
“Needless to say Mrs Igo was absolutely thrilled with our team’s good deed and was really moved by the fact we had taken the time to do it.”
In addition to the practical jobs, Emanuel Whittaker staff also provided advice on common winter weather problems such as condensation and locating the stoptap in case of frozen pipes.
John adds: “It was good to help out so many residents and we also reminded them about property maintenance issues that were their own, rather than their landlord’s responsibility. The feedback we received from residents were great and everyone involved feels a great sense of satisfaction.”
Salix Homes residents raise a cup to refurbished homes
Nov 6, 2013
Residents living in sheltered accommodation are celebrating the completion of major improvement works at their homes.
For the past six months, we have been working with Salix Homes to overhaul 45 homes at the Broomedge sheltered housing complex in Broughton, Salford.
The £500,000 improvement scheme has seen 29 homes in the main building and a further 16 cottage flats overhauled to bring them up to the government’s Decent Homes standard. The flats, which were built during the 1960s and cater for elderly residents, have been completely rewired and fitted with new kitchens, bathroom and doors. The communal lounge was also given a makeover and the laundry room has been refurbished.
Externally, the main building has been cladded to give it a fresh, new look and the old roof has been replaced. Green-fingered residents also lent a hand to makeover the communal gardens planting new plants and trees including a ‘Salix’ tree in honour of Salix Homes.
Residents Carole and Charles Wood are thrilled with their new-look home. Carole said: “I feel like I have been given a new lease of life, everything is now practical and simple. We are so delighted and proud of our new kitchen and bathroom.”
Salford-based housing provider Salix Homes was recently named by Salford Council as the chosen landlord to take ownership of the 8,500 council homes in Salford they currently manage in a proposed stock transfer.
This latest regeneration work forms part of a wider multi-million pound home improvement programme across Salford and the housing provider is promising to invest a further £700 million over the next 30 years if the stock transfer goes ahead.
Joe Willis, chief executive at Salix Homes, said: “Salix Homes is committed to improving homes and communities in Salford now and into the future and we’ve been delighted to work alongside our contractors Emanuel Whittaker to bring a new lease of life to these homes which were in dire need of upgrading.
“This investment has made an enormous difference to our tenants’ quality of life and we are proud to be able to provide them with modern and desirable homes which are comfortable and economical to run.
“We appreciate the patience of our tenants during the refurbishment work, but we know they are as pleased as we are with the results, which is testament to all the hard work that’s been put in.”
As the majority of the tenants are elderly, Salix Homes and Emanuel Whittaker have worked closely with residents to ensure minimum disruption.
Paul Robinson, site manager at Emanuel Whittaker, said: “The majority of tenants living here have benefited not only from work on their own individual flats but also from improvements to the communal areas.
“As many tenants are elderly and some quite frail we have been very careful to ensure that we worked closely with them or their families to keep stress levels to a minimum and with satisfaction levels running at 100%, I think we can confidently say we have succeeded.”
Mike Copple, chairman of the Broomedge Residents Association, has been impressed with the standard of service. He said: “Emanuel Whittaker staff have gone more than the extra mile in ensuring as far as possible that inconvenience to the residents was minimised and where issues arose they were dealt with in a caring and sensitive manner.”
To celebrate the end of work, residents enjoyed a tea party in their new and improved communal lounge.
Garry Holt, resident liaison officer with Emanuel Whittaker added: “The tenants are a great bunch and we will be sorry to leave. The tea party is our way of saying thanks for having us. It’s been lovely to see so many people turn up to say goodbye.”
New-look tower block transforms Salford skyline
Sep 28, 2013A £3 million refurbishment project at an ageing Salford tower block has been completed.
For the past 18 months social housing provider Salix Homes has been working alongside construction company Emanuel Whittaker to overhaul Floral Court in Higher Broughton.
The 14 storey high rise building, which was built in 1964, has been completely rendered, cladded and painted in striking shades of orange and white, totally transforming the once grey tower block.
Internally the 88 flats have been fitted with new doors, modern kitchens and bathrooms and have been either rewired or electrically upgraded. The roof of the building has also been replaced and the lifts have been upgraded.
A state-of-the-art Eco-Pod heating system, which uses solar thermal energy, has also been fitted to the roof, which will slash the building’s carbon footprint.
Salford based-housing provider Salix Homes was recently named by Salford Council as the chosen landlord to take ownership of the 8,500 council homes in Salford they currently manage in a proposed stock transfer.
This latest regeneration work forms part of a wider multi-million pound home improvement programme across Salford and the housing provider is promising to invest a further £700 million over the next 30 years if the stock transfer goes ahead.
Joe Willis, chief executive at Salix Homes, said: “This major investment at Floral Court marks a major milestone in our Decent Homes improvement programme and we are very proud to have worked alongside Emanuel Whittaker to provide our tenants with the modern, desirable and economical homes they deserve.
“Salix Homes is committed to providing high quality accommodation for the people of Salford now and into the future and this refurbishment project is testament to this. Floral Court has been completely transformed for the better and we are confident that these improvement works will make a huge difference to our tenants’ quality of life.”
During the refurbishment work, contractors uncovered a commemorative brick inscribed with 1964 – the date the block was built. To mark the completion of the project, a mural has been created at the entrance to the building with the original brick, alongside a 2013 inscribed brick.
Resident Kevin Petitt, 55 who has lived in the block for 12 years, was chosen to unveil the commemorative brick mural. He said: “The improvement work has made such a difference to my home. The new heating system is just marvellous; I haven’t even had to use my heating for the past three months because the building is so warm.
“I loved my home before, but I love it even more now – it’s the best place I’ve ever lived. I was very proud to unveil the brick mural because this place means a lot to me, it’s my home.”
Terry Kidman, contract manager for Emanuel Whittaker, added: “It’s been a pleasure to work with the Floral Court residents who have reported 100 per cent satisfaction with the work we have done on their individual flats and the communal areas of the block. Although we will be sad to go we are pleased to be leaving so many happy customers.”
Salix Homes also worked closely with social housing procurement consortium, Procure Plus, to deliver training opportunities for local residents during the refurbishment work.
Jackie Roach, operations manager at, Procure Plus, said: “By working together on large projects, such as Floral Court, we have been able to assist Salix Homes in identifying and bringing together its material and labour requirements across different projects, improving efficiencies and securing favourable costings.”
Emanuel Whittaker staff raise £1,000 a month, every month for a year
Aug 29, 2013
After a year of exhausting and imaginative fund-raising to celebrate its 175th anniversary, staff at Emanuel Whittaker have announced the total money raised in the period was £12,009.17. That equates to a thousand pounds a month, every month for a year!
Clive Newton, Managing Director said: “With so many activities going on it has taken a while to get all the money in, but we are thrilled with the final count. Our staff, clients, sub-contractors and friends and family have been incredibly generous and it’s been genuinely lovely to meet some of the people at The Christie Charity and Dr Kershaw’s hospice who will benefit from the money.”
To raise the cash Emanuel Whittaker staff were split into teams who between them all developed a vast array of fundraising initiatives including a car wash, making and selling handmade garden furniture and kitchen equipment, a sponsored weight loss, a sponsored silence, various sponsored walks, a bungee jump and a meditation evening as well as various sporting events including; football, cricket and golf.
The monies are to be divided between the two charities and the company has asked that The Christie funds are directed to the Young Oncology and Haematology and Transplant Unit.
“Emanuel Whittaker has invested a lot of effort into developing young people through our apprenticeship programme and we work with local schools and colleges to encourage young people into construction,” explains Clive Newton. “As a result of this relationship with young people we wanted to do something that specifically benefits them.”
The Christie currently has two specialist services, in need of refurbishment, however it has identified that it can deliver even greater results if the services are integrated, especially as approximately 50% of young cancer patients will have a haematological cancer (blood cancer). The Christie charity is therefore hoping to raise just over £10 million to build a new integrated treatment centre to replace the existing Young Oncology Unit (YOU) and Haematology and Transplant Unit (HTU).
Natalie Pike, Corporate Development Manager at The Christie Charity said: ‘Everyone at The Christie is so grateful for the amazing support of Emanuel Whittaker, their staff and customers. The wonderful donation will be going towards our new Young Oncology Unit, which will help enable us to build a new world-class treatment centre for teenage cancer patents. The unit should be complete early next year and we will be inviting everyone who contributed to the opening ceremony.”
Over fifty per cent of the funds will be given to Oldham’s hospice. Dr Kershaw’s needs nearly £5,000 every day to be able to continue to operate its specialist services and maintain the outstanding standard of care. Fundraiser Lisa Pearson said: “We were so thrilled and proud be chosen as one of the nominated charities for Emanuel Whittaker’s anniversary fundraising year. As a local charity it is important for us to build and maintain links within our local community and Emanuel Whittaker’s approach to fundraising meant that we had plenty of opportunities to work with staff and suppliers.
“Dr Kershaw’s Hospice is extremely grateful for the company’s support, it costs over £1.75 million to run the hospice each year and the lion’s share of that funding comes from local companies, community groups and businesses. Without the support of people within our community we could not provide the vital services we do.”
Emanuel Whittaker’s 175th anniversary celebrations have now concluded, however, many staff have enjoyed their fund-raising activities so much they intend to continue helping their favourite charities.
Director John Gallagher said: “Where possible the company will continue to support staff in their efforts to raise money for good causes through either financial or practical support.
“We had no idea how much we could raise in 12 months and everyone involved has been staggered by the generosity of all our supporters. We want to pass on our congratulations and thanks to all those involved.”
Tower block tenants in Salford are celebrating the completion of their own community garden.
Jun 13, 2013
Two years ago, Vertical Villages Tenants and Residents Association, which represents the interests and needs of the local community living in the tower blocks in the Blackfriars and Greengate area of Salford, successfully applied to their landlord Salix Homes for a grant to develop the gardens around Black and White Friar Courts.
However, they had to postpone the work when Emanuel Whittaker started working on the internal and external renovation of the Black Friar high rise block as part of a multi-million pound home improvement programme by Salix Homes.
“We always intended to continue the garden project after Emanuel Whittaker had finished,” said Chair Paul Brodie. “The tower block has been re-clad and inside we all have lovely modernised new homes and so the gardens are just the final piece of the make-over jigsaw. After working with us for so long, Emanuel Whittaker wanted to do something to say farewell and we are delighted they decided to play such a major part in the project.”
Emanuel Whittaker lead resident liaison officer Adam Berry decided to organise a ‘garden army’ to tackle the work over a few days and complete the garden and planting once and for all.
“We have been working with residents here for over a year and have made some great friends,” said Adam. “As our way of saying thank you for putting up with us we were determined to leave the area looking as good as it can be.”
Emanuel Whittaker led the recruitment campaign by providing trade volunteers such as bricklayers and joiners to lend their muscle and expertise to the work. They also provided some of the necessary supplies such as soil and compost while other contractors such as JWD, Absolute Electrical, Riverstone, Foggs Floors and Liquid Roofing were also able to give their support with additional funding.
Several Salix Homes’ staff also went along to lend a hand. Joe Willis, chief executive at Salix Homes, said: “We were thrilled to be part of the ‘garden army’ to transform this space into a community garden. Safe and attractive communal spaces are really important to build and strengthen communities, so we are delighted our tenants now have this outdoor communal area to use and enjoy.
“The completion of the garden is the final piece in the jigsaw to the major improvement works that have been taking place at Black Friar Court as part of our Decent Homes programme. Not only have our tenants now got modern, energy efficient and comfortable homes fit for 21st century living, but, thanks to the energy and commitment of local residents and Emanuel Whittaker they’ve also got this wonderful outdoor area, which I’m sure will be very well-used.”
Around a dozen residents from the tower blocks were happy to come out in the sunshine and lend a hand and the garden army started by clearing up debris litter pick before jet washing communal areas. An area of decking has been built and the ramp to the existing shed has been made more wheelchair friendly. There has also been masses of re-planting while new walls and fencing have been erected and painted.
Site Manager John Woolley who project managed the supplies, funding and personnel and organised the event, said: “It’s amazing what you can achieve when you set your mind to it. There was a lot of work to be done but between us all we have done it! The transformation is complete.”
One of the original aims of the garden project was to work closely with the Biospheric Foundation, a Salford based community interest company that wants to encourage local communities to grow their own food and plants in a sustainable way and Paul Brodie explains how the garden is not just about making the area look nice.
“We are planting edible plants and doing as much work as we can to ensure that local residents can actually eat what we grow,” he said.
“We owe a great deal to the hard work and determination of Emanuel Whittaker’s site manager John Woolley and Adam Berry who have helped us complete a project that could have taken months to finish.
“We intend to have a formal garden launch party later in the summer once the flowers and plants have become more established and we hope that this area becomes a well-used communal space where residents young and old can work and recreate together to build a stronger community.”