The Hillmead estate is in Shepton Mallet where we have more than 100 homes. There are also several other housing associations with properties on the estate.
We are currently working with tenants and partner organisations on how we can improve the estate and there are regular meetings to discuss these improvements.
We are to invest around £1 million over the next three years in the estate.
The investment plan is part of ongoing work that’s taken place over the last few years to tackle past problems that have plagued the estate. Thanks to hard work by Flourish’s housing officer Jan Schlechter, police and residents the association has evicted around 11 problem tenants over the past two years and let empty its homes to a wider range of people which has helped to build a better community feeling.
We're now working on improving the look of our properties on the estate after working with tenants to gather their ideas on how to make the blocks of flats better places to live.
The plan is to:
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Create lockable, covered binstores which will help to prevent the bin fires which have occurred in the past. Metalwork incorporating the new Flourish Homes tree logo and hearts suggested by children will be created to make the bin stores more attractive
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Install new wooden doors at the entrance to the blocks of flats, complete with door entry systems to make tenants feel more secure
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Improve the landscaping around the estate to make it look more attractive
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Help some ground floor maisonette residents create their own gardens so that they have their own outdoor space to grow flowers, veg or dry clothes
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Create three special open areas with benches and landscaping to encourage families and children to get out and play
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Paint the inside communal areas and do external maintenance work such as decorating external rendering and maintaining and replacing guttering to give the buildings a bit of a facelift
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Over the following two years the plan is to provide outdoor balconies and patios to the buildings so that most residents will have some form of outside space they can call their own. It’s hoped this may help residents to tackle condensation issues which have troubled some tenants in the flats, by offering a more secure outdoor space to dry clothes when the weather’s fine.
“Already Hillmead is not the place it used to be because of all the work that’s been done on the estate, not just by Flourish Homes but also by the police, Mendip District Council, the residents’ association, other housing associations and most importantly the people who live there. Without them we wouldn’t have achieved what we have so far. Hillmead is a much nicer place to live and is proving very popular when flats become free, which is always a good indication that its reputation has turned around,” said Beverley Breeds, Area Manager at Flourish Homes, which is a member of the Aster Group.
“Of course, Flourish Homes is not the only housing association with homes on the Hillmead estate but our properties are the first you see when you come onto the estate. So we are expecting that this £1 million investment by Flourish Homes is going to have a significant effect on the look of the estate which continue the hard work we’ve all done over the past few years to make it a better place for everyone to live.”
Minutes from previous meetings
You can find the minutes for these meetings below.
Minutes from 22 April 2009 meeting
Minutes from 21 January 2009 meeting
