makingitofficial


To be really effective, aResidents’ Association should be formally recognised. This givesyou andyour fellow residentscertain rights under the Landlord and Tenant legislation. To obtain legal recognition for yourRA youcan askyourlandlordforawritten noticecertifying that yourRAhasan elected committee, is independent of the landlord and will give notice of meetings and has a voting structure in place. If it is not possible to get formal recognitionofyourRAfrom your landlord then you can apply to the localRentAssessment Committeefor a certificate to this effect.


Once yourRAis recognisedyouwill: nHavearight tobeconsultedwhenanew managingagent isbeingappointed; nBeable toapproachyour landlord or managingagenttoget informationabout annualcharges nAppointasurveyorunder theHousingAct 1996to carry outamanagementaudit nExpectnotificationwhenmajorworks areproposedandcanobtain copiesof quotes for theworktobecarriedout;and nHaveasay inwhichcontractorsmightbe usedformajorworks.


TypicallyResidents’Associationsget


involved in: nIncreasing thesense of belongingtoa


community; nInformingresidents of theirrightsunder the lawand in particular under the Landlord


and Tenant related legislation; nExerting pressure if needed,onthe landlord or hisagent tomaintainanappropriate standard of decoration andmaintenanceto theinteriorand exterior of buildings, andat


reasonable costs nEstablishing arelationshipwiththe landlord and/or his agent to facilitate good management;representing theneedsand viewsofresidents onmanagement issuesand reportingbacktothe residentsthe concerns of


thelandlord/agent nAssisting in resolving disputes between


individual residents nOrganising opposition to undesirable


planning applications nPreparingtotakeonresponsibilities of management if transferred by thelandlord underthe Rights of First RefusalorRight to Manage Legislation or following the purchase by theresidents of thelandlord’sinterest collectively. Awellrun andsupported residents’


associationgenerallymeansamorecost effective blockand onewhich is easier forthe managing agenttodealwith. If you are a leaseholder, is there an active


Residents’ Association in your block; if you areamanagingagent is thereone in every blockyoumanage?Ifnot…thenwhatare you waiting for?●


yashminmistri isapartner atJPCLawandaconsultant to theFPRA


Flat Living Issue 15


JOIN THE CLUB B&Q’s Johncompton introduces


Streetclub –asimplebut innovativeway of getting neighbours together and helping develop community spirit


todayweall lead increasinglybusy lives. Buildingasense of communityandkeepingin touch withourneighbours seemsharder than ever.Mostpeoplewanttobepartofalocal neighbourhoodgroup,andtheyknowwhy. For someit’s thefeelingof beingmore secure andattachedtotheir area in thisincreasingly globalworld. For others it’sabout theobvious benefits of sharinglocally, savingmoneyand livingmorelightly.Andtherearealso those forwhomit’s all about gettingstuff done togetherandengaginginlocal issuesasa community. Sadly it’snot easy tomake thisareality,


evenif youdoknowyourneighbours.When asked,most peopleadmit theyonlyknow theirimmediateneighbours byname,and withoutemail addressesorphonenumbers, they justdon’tknowhowto keep theirwhole streetupto date, informedandengaged aboutwhat they can do together. Thepeoplewho


knowthisbest of all arethosewhotake responsibility for runningaresidents or atenants group. Whetheritisagreeing onwhereto spend thelimitedrepairs budget, talkingabout shared facilities, sortingout carparkingor justmaking anddistributingthenewsletter,itcanbea challengingandoftenthankless task.So, B&Qhas createdStreetclub –aneasy-to- use,web-basedtooltobringneighbours together. It’s all aboutenablingresidents to talk, planandact aroundneighbourhood- relatedissuesandactivities.Thesemight be localevents, bindays, crimealerts or council problems, or just somethingfunlike organisingastreetparty-whatevermatters to theirneighbourhood. Streetclub is ideally suited to resident


andtenant groups,andformanagement committeesandso fits reallywell with communitiesbasedaroundblocks of flats.Itcanmake thesegroupseasier to run,moreengagingfor all, andcanevenchangetheway they organise someof their regular activities.Whena discussiontakes place, all memberscanseeand join theconversation. Urgentmessages canbe pushedout to personal emails,whilekeeping theactualemail address


Get


connected with


Streetclub 63


Most people admit they onlyknow theirimmediate neighbours


private.Documents such as constitutions can be stored,andmeetingminutes distributed andarchived.Eventhings likenewsletters mightnowbeunnecessary, as eachnewtopic is sentoutwhenit’sneeded,andmembers canchoose tohaveadaily orweeklyupdate ofwhat’s goingon.Whywaitforamonthly digest?And, it is designedso that there isn’tahugeworkload for one person– the adminrole is really limitedtoauthorising peoplein. Other thanthat,anyonecanstart adiscussion, shareatool orpostanevent. Andbecause it is separate fromothersocial networks such asFacebook, youcanbe confident that youareonly talkingtoyour knownclubmembership. Youdefineyour clubas youwish-astreet,ahandful of streets, orablockof flats –whatever is right for you. Sohowdo youget involved? Yousignup to Streetclub,and createaclub,which is quickandeasy to do.Thenyou sendaninvitation to yourneighbours. This caneither be usinganemail addressifyouknow it, or by printingout theready-made


invitationsandpoppingthemthroughtheir doors. If youdon’thaveagreat community rightnow, this isasuperb reasonto invite peopleroundforacoffee aswell,andget theconversationgoing.Andifyoudo already haveanassociation, youshould quickly see howStreetclub canmakeyourlifeeasier andbetter. It’s free for all to useandwedon’t advertiseinStreetclub ormarket to your inbox – that’sour commitment●


JohncomptonmanagesStreetclubbyB&Q, thefirst socialnetworkaimedatgettingneighbours at Street leveltotalk,shareandplantogether tobuildastronger communityspirit


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