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Business Case Studies Williamsburgh Housing Association
Business Case Studies Williamsburgh Housing Association
Williamsburgh Housing Association |
The developmentA few miles west of Glasgow, at 42 Bank Street, Paisley, stands a small, modern tenement block of seven flats. Its residents are all tenants of Williamsburgh Housing Association, a not-for-profit society that aims to provide high-quality, affordable housing to people in Paisley’s East End.Over the past 20 years, the Association has helped transform the area, tackling poor housing conditions and helping those in need of a home. The challengeLike many of Williamsburgh’s properties, 42 Bank Street was until recently served by a communal terrestrial television aerial, which only gave residents access to the five terrestrial channels. With the advent of digital satellite TV, many tenants decided to put up their own minidishes – even though this sometimes went against property regulations. In fact, so many did this that it caused an administrative headache for Williamsburgh, while the area was dubbed “dish city” by residents.The upcoming digital switchover, due to take place in this region of Scotland in 2011, posed a further challenge for the Association. It knew that if it didn’t act quickly many of its tenants would could be left with blank screens after the switchover. The solutionIn the middle of 2008, Williamsburgh decided to upgrade the communal TV system at each of its blocks (comprising a total of 1,600 flats), including the one at 42 Bank Street. It chose a Sky-approved installer, Campbell & Kennedy, to carry out the project, who would work to Sky’s specification using skilled, qualified and experienced engineering teams.Campbell & Kennedy advised the Association to install an Integrated Reception System (IRS) at each block, because this would provide the most flexible and reliable platform, giving residents the freedom to choose how they would receive TV entertainment in their home. Williamsburgh accepted this advice, and Campbell & Kennedy immediately began surveying all its properties. It then designed the IRS in such a way that TV signals would be sent to each flat in a block through five main cables from a single, discreet roof-top satellite dish. The cables would run through the attic space and then, encased in “trunking”, down to each flat through communal areas. Campbell & Kennedy also offered to remove any existing minidishes and connect the flats to the new communal systems instead. The upgrade work across all 1,600 flats was completed in only seven weeks. Stewart McLean and his wife, who have lived at 42 Bank Street for 14 years, were impressed by how smoothly the installation went. “The installers were only in my flat for about an hour,” says Stewart. “They just connected us up to the communal dish and we were ready to go. It was really very quick, with the minimum of disruption. The resultWilliamsburgh’s tenants now have access to the same digital TV services they’d be able to choose if they lived in their own houses. They can select the TV supplier of their choice, and those who subscribe to Sky can get the latest digital entertainment systems, like Sky+ and Sky+HD.Stewart McLean is delighted with the freedom of choice that the new communal TV system offers. “All the tenants are happy that the choice is there,” says Stewart. “What’s more, the flats are more attractive to newcomers, and we don’t have to worry any more about the digital switchover or having lots of minidishes on the side of the building. That’s all taken care of now.” Like many tenants of social housing up and down the UK, Stewart decided to subscribe to Sky. He signed up for the Variety pack because it gives him a range of channels that he and his wife really want to watch. “I like movies,” he says, “but mMy real passion is for biographies and documentaries about history and geography. And with the new satellite system, we get all the variety and choice we could ask for.” |
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