H o u s i n g
a CD player, please!). He also comments that the introduction of a proper appointments system by MHS has made life much easier. The downside he sees of MHS taking over the contract was the significant level of staff redundancies in order to deliver efficiency – teams are now very small and required to cover large patches.
We arrive at Chilwell and bump into Adrian again Adrian is a chatty individual and, believe it or not, he said, ‘this is not just a job, it’s providing a service’ and he appeared to fully empathise with the Service family lifestyle, recognising that many wives were on their own with deployed partners.
At the next job we meet a heavily pregnant lady who is somewhat embarrassed at having to call out MHS for minor jobs. The occupant feels she could have done the job herself if the parts were available via stores. Perhaps this is something MHS could consider as a cost-saving measure?
We depart at 13.05 and pop round to a void property where a number of jobs are required. We take the opportunity for a
lunch break, sitting on the empty lounge floor. I comment that the property has clearly been cleaned professionally to Move-in standard and wonder why MHS is now doing further jobs that may create mess. Again, MHS may wish to consider the timing of cleaning to be completed after all maintenance work has been completed – makes sense to me!
Chris has three jobs to do. The first two are straightforward but I do have an issue with the third as he appears to be replacing a perfectly functional bathroom cabinet for no other reason than a piece of facing has come off. Unfortunately, the replacement cabinet is half the size of the original so Chris now has to make good and paint a large square of the wall which, despite his best efforts with the magnolia paint (is there any other colour?!), still looks as if a larger cabinet has been removed. I know as an occupant which I’d have preferred.
I also glance out of the window and note that the garden hedges have recently been cut,
presumably, ready for Move-in. Unfortunately, all the cuttings are left on the lawn so I assume a return visit will be required to collect it all. I wonder if this is cost-effective?
Before we leave, he measures up a damaged garage door, one in a block of garages. I ask why the whole block is not done at once (even I can see that all the doors are in the same poor state of repair and a local resident advises that they all leak) but Chris advises he can only do those that are reported. Again, I can’t help but wonder if this is the most efficient way.
By now the temperature is more than 30°C and we face the joy of a long transit from Nottingham to Cottesmore. I am now too hot to ask any more questions and I decide to give poor old Chris a break.
So, what are my overall impressions of my day? If Chris could be cloned, I suspect MHS would see a welcome reduction in customer complaints. I know he may not be typical and some reading this will have very different views as to the service provided by their local contractors. If so, tell us about it and we can report your concerns to MHS.
www.raf-ff.org.uk Before
After
I can only report what I saw on the day and I have to say that my overall impression was good. I have raised a few issues and I’m sure MHS management will look into these observations. I send my thanks to the MHS team at Cottesmore, and especially Chris Humphries, for allowing me the privilege of an inside view of life as an MHS joiner.
Autumn 2009 21
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