Working Hard to Help Winn Gardens Residents
Following devastating flooding on the Winn Gardens estate earlier this week, Sheffield Homes and its partners have been working hard to help residents of the estate get back to normality.
Sheffield Homes have now started phase two of the clean up on the estate, which involves using specialist equipment to remove the sludge left by floodwater from floors, walls and under floorboards of properties. Sheffield Homes’ contractors have been sourcing as much equipment as possible to help with the clean up including pumps, dehumidifiers and wet-vacuums.
Estate Officers from Sheffield Homes are collecting food waste and household waste from around the estate to avoid attracting vermin and they will also collect damaged furniture. A team of electricians has been working hard to electrically test all of the homes (both tenanted and privately owned) on the estate and are now carrying out electrical repairs. All tenants and residents will get their appliances tested to make sure they are safe to plug in.
Earlier this week Sheffield City Council’s StreetForce section, joined by staff from Sheffield Homes and contractors, cleaned the streets of the estate and helped to make the estate safe and accessible.
Building Surveyors have been on site this week to assess damage to council properties. Contractors will be on site from today starting repairs and making any emergency repairs necessary to prevent damage from more bad weather.
Many tenants of Winn Gardens have chosen to remain on the estate although Sheffield Homes has rehoused 7 families due to flood damage. Support is in place on the estate to help tenants and residents who chose to stay through this difficult time. Sheffield Homes will have liaison staff and wardens on site all weekend to help and construction partner Mears has brought its ‘Comfort Caravan’ to the site. The caravan is usually used when carrying out Decent Homes work on properties as a place for tenants to relax and get a hot drink or meal.
Staff at Winners Community Centre, home of Tenants and Residents group ‘Middlewood Winners’, are doing a great job of distributing food, blankets and household goods that have been donated by well-wishers from all over Sheffield.
Sheffield Homes have arranged for 24-hour security for the estate. Safety Wardens from across the city will be on patrol between 6am and 10pm with a security firm taking over from 10pm to 8am.
Peter Morton, Chief Executive of Sheffield Homes, said; “We are aware of how difficult the situation has been for Winn Gardens tenants and residents and we are trying to do as much as we can to help them. Staff members at Sheffield Homes and our contractors have put in a huge amount of effort this week to help and the spirit of people living on the estate has been truly commendable.
“We are now moving onto a detailed repair programme for properties with the main aim of making them safe and habitable again. We are aware that there could be more rain this weekend and we have put emergency plans in place to cope with this. We have staff working all weekend and others on standby as well as access to specialist equipment should it be required”.