Meet Christopher
Landscaping work in the garden at one of our tenants' homes has make a big difference to their lives, particularly Christopher.
At a property inspection last year for a housing scheme in Devon, our Supported Living Housing Officer Ilir Demaj was given a letter that was written by one of the tenants, Christopher. Writing the letter was a good way for Christopher to express his feelings about the garden.
The sloping garden had a crazy paving pathway down to the chicken hutch which Christopher and the other tenants cared for. It wasn’t easy for them to walk down to the garden, so it was arranged for works to be carried out to landscape the garden, to make it better with a ramp and rails for extra safety. Unfortunately the company carrying out the work had to stop halfway through and couldn’t complete it. This meant that the garden was inaccessible for the tenants during construction work.
In Christopher’s letter, he wrote about how important the garden was to him. He said: “I like to invite people over like my brother, and I enjoy feeding the birds and squirrels.”
Progress Involvement Officer Alan Greig said: “After speaking with Ilir, I met with my manager and we worked out what we needed to do next. Progress Surveyor Chris Pollitt found local contractors who could finish the garden ramp access, which was suitable for people with mobility issues. We made sure that they understood that the tenants’ views were a priority. It was great that tenants were involved with the garden design and could tell the contractors about their needs.”
