- Hundreds of millions of funding to modernise thousands of
houses.
- Repair teams and call centre staffing increased ahead of
winter.
- £400 million prioritised for accommodation through Defence
Command Paper Refresh.
Service families will see thousands of military homes modernised,
with preparation work already underway, and repair staffing
bolstered ahead of the winter period.
A £400 million investment over the next two years was prioritised
for accommodation in the Defence Command Paper Refresh to ensure
good quality accommodation is provided to Service Personnel and
their families. The work to modernise thousands of homes is
underway, from kitchen and bathroom refits to new doors, windows
and roofs to improve thermal efficiency.
In addition, this winter, contractor repair teams at Amey and
VIVO and call centre staffing at Pinnacle has increased to
respond to anticipated seasonal demand for maintenance to Service
Family Accommodation.
The £400 million investment into military homes over the next two
years will deliver:
- Kitchen and/or bathroom refits in more than 1,000 homes;
- Boiler and heating upgrades for around 1,500 properties;
- More than 4,500 damp and mould remediation packages;
- Major work for more than 4,000 other properties to improve
thermal efficiency, to prevent damp and mould and reduce the cost
of living for service families. These works will include new
doors, windows, roofs and the installation of external wall
insulation; and
- Extensive, high-quality refurbishments of around 1,000
currently unused homes to increase the number of modern homes
available to Service families.
Defence Secretary, said:
Our Armed Forces go above and beyond to serve and keep us safe,
so it’s imperative they live in good quality accommodation –
often that is not the case.
I will not stand by and let this continue. This funding is just
the beginning and military accommodation will always be a top
priority.
By investing in our estate, we are investing in our people,
ensuring they have modernised properties, and fast and effective
help when issues arise, to reflect the selfless dedication they
provide to us as a nation.
Responses to housing issues last winter were completely
unacceptable and action was taken to withhold payments from our
accommodation contractors to the fullest extent
possible. Substantial progress has been made to improve
performance since then and we are approaching this winter with a
dramatically lower number of open complaints and overdue
works.
The MOD has been working with contractors to further develop
severe weather contingency plans to cope with severe weather
events, and to ensure services can deliver and recover quickly to
minimise disruption to families.
Defence Infrastructure Organisation Chief Executive,
said:
We want to ensure that military families have the quality of
accommodation that they expect and rightly deserve, and through
the £400 million investment we will continue our work to
modernise and improve homes for thousands of families.
The service that many families experienced last winter was just
not good enough and we have worked closely with our contractors
to put plans in place to help us respond to the challenges that
the colder months bring.
To ensure the right resources are in the right place at the right
time as winter progresses, DIO and our contractors’ winter
planning activities include:
- Pinnacle call handling capacity increased by 55%.
- Amey resources increased by 40%.
- VIVO has additional out-of-hours staff for urgent repairs and
have created a Customer Experience team to better manage contact
with families regarding issues and appointments.
- Better availability of parts, including temporary heaters
which are distributed nationwide.
- Agile resource allocation processes during the coldest
months.
Military accommodation will continue to receive investment over
the next decade to ensure the upkeep and maintenance of the
defence estate.
To talk openly about accommodation issues being faced, and to
help solve the problems long-term, Service Personnel and both
current and former, were invited to share their experiences with
the House of Commons Defence Select Committee.
