Housing repairs

You can get help with housing repairs in a few different ways:

• volunteers
• home improvement agencies
• your housing association
• flexible home improvement loans from the council

Age UK Buckinghamshire offers gardening and handyperson services from volunteers.

Call: 01296 431 911
Email: [email protected]

Home improvement agencies (HIAs) are not-for-profit organisations run by housing associations, local authorities and charities. They can help people who own their own homes or who live in privately rented accommodation and who are elderly, disabled or on a low income to repair, maintain or adapt their home.

For example, an HIA can:

• arrange for repairs to be carried out to your home
• help you to get funding for repairs to be carried out to your home
• give you advice about a range of issues which affect your living conditions
• organise the fitting of small aids and adaptations to help you live independently in your home
• install security measures to your home such as door and window locks, door chains and viewers

Foundations is the national body for home improvement agencies in England. They can put you in touch with a local organisation.

Call: 0300 124 0315
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

If you live in a council house or a housing association property then you can contact them for support with housing repairs.

There is lots of useful advice on this available from the Shelter housing charity website. This includes what to do if a council or housing association refuses to carry out repairs, takes too long or does them badly.

If you're a homeowner aged 60 or over then you can get a flexible home improvement loan from your council.

With these loans you can repay as little or as much of the loan as you like each month, with the peace of mind that it has been provided on a not-for-profit basis.

What you may be able to improve

The council will consider improvements that can make your home safer, warmer, healthier or more comfortable. Examples of work that may be possible include:

• essential repairs and maintenance
• central heating or improvements to heating
• replacement doors and windows
• improvements to insulation
• roof and structural repairs
• replacement bathroom suites
• installation of level-access showers
• plumbing and drainage repairs
• rewiring
• replacement kitchens
• burglar alarm and home security
• replacement guttering, soffits and cladding
• work associated with eradicating dampness, wet rot, dry rot and woodworm
• installation of stair-lifts and other adaptations