A new approach to delivering improved maintenance services

We have been working to find a private sector partner to work with us to maintain our 20,000 council homes and public buildings. A high proportion of tenants are satisfied with our current service. But by adding private sector expertise we plan to improve services, reduce costs and provide more training opportunities.

Kier Stoke

We intend to award Kier Group the contract to establish a Joint Venture Company to provide housing and building maintenance. This decision will be confirmed over the next two weeks, subject only to completion of a small number of formalities. Kier Group and Stoke-on-Trent City Council will form the new company called Kier Stoke.

Kier Stoke will provide services for the repair, maintenance and improvement of all council housing in the city and the maintenance of public buildings owned by the city council. The contract will begin on 4 February 2008, with all existing repair reporting arrangements remaining the same. If you wish to report a repair the telephone number remains the same - 234100. If you have reported and are awaiting a repair or improvement your place on our waiting lists will not be affected.

More information about the new arrangements is included in the January 2008 issue of Residents' Newsround which was sent to our tenants and leasholders in January 2008. Follow the link from this page to view Residents' Newsround.

We are also communicating with all our staff, suppliers and partner agencies regarding the new arrangements. 

We are all confident that this contract will help to protect the jobs of our skilled workforce and provide excellent services to all our tenants. 

Why do we need to change?

The workload for council housing maintenance teams has reduced in recent years. Major housing improvement programmes mean homes are in better condition and need less maintenance. We have fewer houses to maintain as a result of 10,000 homes sold to tenants under ‘right-to-buy’. A significant back-log of work and the need to develop our services are key reasons why we need to look at how we maintain our public building maintenance. We also need to secure the future of our business by modernising and investing in services.

What are the benefits of a joint venture?

Improving services - Investing in new technology and ways of working will increase our performance and improve services. The council will hold a 20 percent stake in the company and its profits.

Providing new opportunities for training and development – investment will help fill the current shortage of skilled workers in the local construction industry.

Accessing new markets - As well as looking after our own houses and public buildings, we will compete for work from other organisations and grow the business. This means we can play a bigger part in the transformation of North Staffordshire.