## **Annual Report 2024**
_**On a journey to become a model of excellence for community-based housing associations**_
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
## **St Matthews Housing Association Ltd. 58 Harper Street Belfast BT5 4EN**
Registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 (No.IP177). Registered with the Department for Communities NI (No.R18).
HMRC registered charitable status (XT28085). Registered with the Charity Commission for NI (NIC 10291)
## **Board of Management**
## **Number attended of 7 Board Meetings in 2023/24**
|Mr P Devlin – Chairperson|6|
|---|---|
|Mr F Woods – Treasurer|7|
|Mr P Donnelly|4|
|Ms L Fegan|4|
|Mr P Ó Ruanaí|6|
|Mr J O’Donnell|4|
|Mr C Devenny|1|
|Mr D Brennan (retired from Board June 2023)|1|
|Mrs P Brennan (retired from Board June 2023)|1|
_**The Board also has two main sub-committees the Finance and Personnel subcommittee and Audit sub-committee. Total expenses reimbursed to Board members in 20232/24 - £0.00**_
## _**(2 Board members were tenants of the Association during 2023/24)**_
## **Staff**
Mr Jim Black – Chief Executive & Honorary Secretary
Mrs Sarah Jane Murray – Finance and Operations Manager
Mr Sean McKinney - Assets Manager
Mrs Sandra Wright – Housing Officer
Mr Kieran Donnelly – Maintenance Officer
Mr C Carew – Housing Trainee
Mrs Deirdre Conlon – P/T Caretaker/Cleaner
## **Telephone No.:- 02890 451070 / Out of Hours Emergency No.:- 0330 123 0341**
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
## **– St Matthews Housing Association a word from our Chairman**
I am happy to repeat once again on another successful and positive year for the Association. We continue to improve, work in partnership with others and manage our costs effectively. We remain on our journey of being a model of excellence for community-based housing and deliver on our mission of quality, afford housing locally.
We remain to committed to growing by working with others. We are well progressed on site with Bryson Street Phase 2 (8 elderly apartments) and new offices at the site of the former parish house of St Matthews Church. Additionally, we are about to deliver at McClure Street, lower Ormeau Road (22 houses for families). We also hope to progress the site at former Strand Bar with a view to delivering some exciting new housing here as well as transforming 58 Harper Street to a new house. All of this is with the kind assistance of APEX HA as our development agent.
Longer term it is our community hope to deliver shared housing at Sirocco and housing and wellbeing opportunities at Translink site. We are continuing to work with the local community representatives on these important objectives. We want to meet the housing demand in our area in the years ahead by realising all the potential of local sites.
All of our housing meets Decent Homes Standard, and we have plans in the coming years to ensure they maintain this standard. We are also conscious of obligations in ensuring we future proof our housing form a green perspective by reducing the carbon footprint and improving the thermal comfort of older housing. We are working to ensure all of property is at least C rated in terms of energy performance by 2030. We have recruited a new Assets Manager in the last year Sean McKinney to aid us in this process of improvement and we have a costed Business Plan that outlines how we can continue to invest in our service and our stock and achieve the growth to make a real impact on local waiting lists.
We are delighted to continue to support local initiatives and projects. We were able to continue our grant assistance of local community initiatives and also helped 20 young people avail of £500 education/training bursaries in the last reporting year. We have recruited a young person locally, Conan Carew, on a housing apprenticeship and he is an excellent young man embarking on his housing career.
St Matthews Housing Association remains a community asset with a strong community focus. We are a vibrant local community enterprise providing homes and helping support community work - and not just in Short Strand but also to our tenants in Clonard and Poleglass. Once again, my thanks go to the efforts of our Board members, who give of their time freely and remain a credit to this community and our staff who continue to operate an excellent housing service.
## **Patrick Devlin - SMHA Chairperson**
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
## **SMHA and Community**
SMHA is at the heart of the Short Strand community, and we have provided an excellent local service to our tenants, including in Clonard and Poleglass for almost 50 years.
## **SMHA seeks to:-**
- Inform - Informing residents
- Consult - Consulting with residents
- Empower - Empowering residents
- Partnership - Partnership with the wider community
- Measure - Measuring outputs
We continue to supply information to tenants through our Annual Report, spring newsletter and our updated website www.smha.co.uk. Many Housing Associations are getting better at supporting communities where they operate and are looking beyond simply the bricks and mortar of the housing, they provide to do more in their communities. Often this is done by awarding small grants to local groups whose work benefits the community.
In 2021 members introduced a local Bursary Scheme and donations have been made in relation to this exercise for the last three years.
By way of support to local community groups, initiatives etc. we expended the following during the last reporting year:-
- Donation to Doyle Youth Club to their “growing boxes” programme - **£1,000**
- Donation to Short Strand Community Forum for their Senior Citizens activities – **£1,000**
- Donation to Short Strand Community Centre for their Men’s Mental Health Project - **£1,000**
- Donation to Caoimhi Hughes for funding for her Mission Zambia trip - **£550**
- Donation to Marie Curie - **£50**
- **SMHA Bursary Scheme Awards 2023** – Bursary scheme awards as per the adopted policy of SMHA – 19 @ £500 and 1 @ £250 – Total - **£9,750**
**Final updated total expended on Financial Inclusion and Community Support Initiatives - £13,350 – equal to 1.08% of income turnover £1.23M for 2023/24.**
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
## **Key Performance Data in 2023/24**
SMHA has performed well in the last several years. We continue to strive to meet performance objectives set for us and also improving the housing service tangibly for all residents. We carried out a comprehensive resident satisfaction survey in 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and most recently 2022 (delayed due to Covid19 pandemic) with excellent results. You will see a summary of some of the recorded key performance data over the last year with some recent comparison years. We are doing well but will always want to be better.
|**Key Performance**
**Areas**|**2021/22**|**2022/23**|**2023/24**|**Target**|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|Total No. Of units of occupied
accommodation|205|207|205|-|
|% of emergency repairs
completed in 24 hours|95%|94%|94%|>85%|
|% of urgent repairs completed
in 4 working days|87%|91%|96%|>80%|
|% of routine repairs completed
in 20 working days|91%|90%|85%|>80%|
|Annual Gas/Oil Servicing
Compliance|99%|95%|97.5%|100%|
|Electrical Servicing
Compliance|96%|97%|99%|100%|
|% of residents satisfied with
SMHA housing service|-|83%|-|>80%|
|% of residents satisfied with
value for money of their home|-|88%|-|>80%|
|% of residents satisfied with
overall quality of their home|-|83%|-|>80%|
|No. Of new lettings|1|2|0|-|
|No. Of relettings|4|4|9|-|
|Average Relet Times (in days)|126|110|88|-|
|No. of complaints
received/resolved prior to any
referral to ombudsman|1/1|1/1|3/3|100%|
|No. of anti-social behaviour
complaints received/resolved|10/10|6/6|1/1|100%|
|Voids as a % of rent
receivable|0.68%|0.96%|1.15%|<1%|
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
|% of total rent receivable
actually collected|99.34%|99.05%|100.2%|>98%|
|---|---|---|---|---|
*Surveyed every 2 years usually, delayed by Covid19 for one additional year
## **SMHA Rents**
SMHA has recorded information on the rents charged for different homes in our management. Our rents are typically amongst the lower end of the housing association sector.
Our Board balances the need to fund our housing service adequately and maintain affordable rents. Typically, our rents compare well against other HA sector rents. **SMHA decided to raise rent by 7% in 2023/24, after previously low rent rises in recent years.**
Our overall average weekly rents as a whole are reported annually to the Department for Communities and are recorded below:-
|Size|General Housing|General Housing|Sheltered Housing|Sheltered Housing|
|---|---|---|---|---|
||No.
Units|Average Net Rent|No.
Units|Average Net Rent|
|1-bedroom|9|£73.82|3|£100.97|
|2-bedroom|59|£84.83|16|£101.45|
|3-bedroom|79|£97.84|0|-|
|4-bedroom|41|£94.69|0|-|
|**Totals**|186||19||
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
## **St Matthews HA Accounts 2023/24**
## **Approved at AGM 30[th] July 2024**
## **Statement of Income**
## **Year ended 31 March 2024**
|**Turnover**
Operating costs
**Operating Surplus**
Interest receivable
Interest payable
Other interest
Pension additional service cost
**Surplus on Ordinary Activities (no taxation – due to**
**charitable status)**
**Surplus for the year**
Actuarial gain (loss) on pension scheme
**Total recognised gains (losses) since last AR**|**2024**
**£**
1,446,852
(1,109,939)
336,913
58,703
(59,521)
2,000
(8,000)
330,095
330,095
6,000
336,095|**2023**
**£**
1,332,005
(1,014,403)
317,602
22,712
(31,918)
(6,000)
(44,000)
258,396
258,396
246,000
504,396|
|---|---|---|
|||
|
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024
|**Statement of Financial Position - as at 31st**
**March 2024**
**Tangible Fixed Assets**
Cost
Less Depreciation
Other Fixed Assets
**Current Assets**
Debtors
Cash & bank balances
**Current Liabilities**
Creditors
**Net Current Assets**
**Total Assets less Current Liabilities**
**Creditors: Amounts Falling Due After More Than 1**
**Year**
Deferred Grant
Long-term liabilities
Pension fund liability
**Total Net Assets:**
Reserves:
Share Capital
Capital Reserves
Revenue Reserves||**2024**
**£**
20,929,420
(5,244,541)
15,684,879
238,369
15,923,248
91,941
1,891,979
1,983,920
(395,348)
1,588,572
**17,511,820**
9,967,730
904,238
-
10,871,968
6,639,852
57
301
6,639,494
6,639,852|**2023**
**£**
20,055,911
(5,048,080)
15,007,031
28,135
15,035,966
99,648
1,577,635
1,677,283
(301,822)
1,375,461
**16,411,427**
9,103,411
1,004,259
-
10,107,670
6,303,757
57
301
6,303,399
6,303,757|
|---|---|---|---|
|||||
|||||
**ST MATTHEW’S HA ANNUAL REPORT 2024** September 2024