Page 42 - Paragon Housing Association - H&S Handbook

Staff Safety
Occasionally you may need to contact Paragon Housing Association by phone, by email, or in person. It could be to request a repair; it could be to provide us with information we require. There may be times when you want to raise a complaint.
Our staff are there to help you and are trained to respond to these situations in a professional and courteous way. We ask that you try to do the same.
We will not tolerate any verbal or physical abuse of our staff, including abusive emails or social media postings. Staff have the right to end calls or interviews if they feel that they are being subject to abuse. They have personal safety devices and will raise an alarm if they feel threatened. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.
It’s understandable that you might be upset or even angry when you contact us, but that’s no excuse to mistreat someone, especially when they are trying to help you.
Sometimes, we won’t be able to give you everything you want, but we will do our utmost to do what we can. That works best when we work together.
Access to undertake repairs / maintenance
Please let us in to carry out safety works. Most people do, and we thank them for helping with this access. However, if you don’t let us in, we can take action to force entry.
Fire & Carbon Monoxide Detectors, Gas Servicing and Safety Checks
The Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 (tolerable standard) was extended (extension of criteria) in order 2019 (“The Order”) and came into effect on 1 February 2022. This order extends the tolerable standard criteria that Paragon HA properties must meet. To meet this order, the Association has installed equipment for detecting and warning of fire or suspected fire and carbon monoxide in all our properties.
The 2001 Act and the Model Scottish secure tenancy agreement provide a contractual right for the Association to take access on 48 hours’ notice to undertake repairs, provided that every reasonable opportunity has been given to you as a tenant to grant access voluntarily.
Each year, while undertaking legal repairs such as gas servicing, EICRs, and other essential repairs, the Association must forcibly take access to a small number of properties. We do this on a re-charge basis, and to prevent this, we ask that you communicate with us to accommodate access at all times.
42 Paragon Housing Association Health and Safety Handbook