How PfH Scotland helped Muirhouse Housing Association reach 100% SHQS compliance for the first time in their history

End to end support that made the difference: How PfH Scotland helped Muirhouse Housing Association transform their homes and hit a landmark compliance milestone

Muirhouse Housing Association had a set of properties that hadn’t been painted in nearly 20 years, windows in poor condition and heating systems that weren’t performing. They were failing Scottish Housing Quality Standards and needed to act. As a smaller organisation with limited in-house procurement resource, they needed a partner who could do more than point them at a framework. They needed someone to walk the journey with them.

THE PROBLEM

Ageing stock, compliance failures and a procurement team stretched too thin

The issues were significant and had built up over time. Thermal problems, water penetration and deteriorating windows were all affecting the quality of homes for residents. Feedback from customers made the scale of the problem hard to ignore. On top of that, the organisation was failing both Scottish Housing Quality Standards and the EESSH regulations.

Piecemeal improvements had been made over the years but a more coordinated, properly procured programme of works was needed. For a smaller housing association without a large procurement function, getting that right was a real challenge.

THE SOLUTION

Access to the right contractors and support through every step of the process

Muirhouse turned to us for help, and we got involved from the very beginning. We gave them access to our procurement frameworks, bringing a range of quality contractors to the table and taking them through the full procurement process from start to finish.

It wasn’t just about opening a door to the market. Our team provided technical and professional support at every stage, making sure Muirhouse had the guidance they needed to procure the right product from the right contractor, something that Stevie McAvoy, Chief Executive of Muirhouse Housing Association, feels they simply couldn’t have achieved alone.

“PfH gave us access to procurement frameworks. They took us through that whole process from start to finish. They really were end to end in terms of the support that they gave us.”

“They got our difficulty. They got our problem. They got the need to deliver good quality investment successfully but also quickly as well. For a small organisation that has procurement limitations they were able to place us in the market where we procured a product from a contractor that probably without their support I don’t believe we would have got.”

THE RESULTS

100% SHQS compliance, 100% tenant satisfaction and a 60% reduction in fuel costs

The results speak for themselves. Muirhouse Housing Association is now 100% SHQS compliant, the first time in the organisation’s history they’ve reached that position. Tenant satisfaction from the works came back at 100% and residents are seeing something like a 60% reduction in fuel costs.

For a small housing association that had been living with these issues for years, the change has been dramatic.

Stevie McAvoy summed it up: “The change has been absolutely dramatic. We have already endorsed both formally and informally PfH’s support. Our experience of that has been a huge success. I have no hesitation in recommending them.”

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