Housing association saying I’m unreasonable I don’t think I am !!!

[HAunreasonable]

The HA need to do planned repair/upgrade work. The appt slots are 830-1230 or 130-530.
I asked them to book mine around school runs but twice they’ve turned up when I’m out ? Now saying that if they are ‘refused entry’ a third time it will lead to further action???

Surely they have to be fair about this and come at a time that works for everyone

She's already explained who that person is and why they can't do that.

I know someone else has mentioned this but who looks after your children while you are at work OP? Could that person help you? I know you said your DM works couldn’t she take half a day off? She could wait in your house for the workmen while you do the school run. It sounds like you have quite a difficult life OP. It can be easy to fall into a trap when life is hard where you become unable to grasp there maybe other solutions to a problem. Not just the solution you are fixated on ie: the HA gives you a time slot you want.

Can you book a morning appointment and drop your child off by eight o'clock to one of their school friends?
If you are home by 8:30 a.m. you would be there for the whole time slot, and more, should they be running an hour or two late.

Ah sorry OP I see you said your Mum does childcare. My other comments still stand.

I'm a home owner. And you've totally misunderstood what I meant by having control.
When your boiler broke, you could decide who was going to fix it. You could find someone who'd do the work without you being present. You could get recommendations, check reviews. Get someone who specialises on your type of boiler. Which is exactly what I had to do a couple of months ago. And when I had to specify my availability, the plumbers tried to work around that. Because if they didn't, they wouldn't get the work.

But council tenants have no control. I would hate that. I've seen what my brother's had to endure with appalling crappy standards of work from contractors who don't give a fuck because their contract with the council means they don't have to care what the householder thinks, or what's convenient for them.

I don't whinge about HA tenants being 'lucky'. I'm glad that my life opportunities have been such that I've been able to own my own house and make my own choices.

No she hasn’t.

It literally says that in the OP.

Just book the appointment a d keep the kids off for the day if needed
Tell the school why, yes it will go down as unorthorised absence but its no big deal...I'm sure they don't fi e for one day??

It doesn’t say she left a note on the door with her phone number.

I think you'll have to explain to the school and take the kids in late after they arrive if there is no one else who can do school run.
Do you have a class WhatsApp? Can you ask on there if someone can help?

and neither are you.

Her child has SEN needing 1:1 support. It often isn't as easy in those instances to arrange a friend to help as it would be for a NT child

(Child may not be able to cope with a different routine / key person, parent may be worried about their ability to keep the child safe, etc).

YANBU, but unfortunately many social housing landlords seem to assume that people living in social housing do fuck all. They assume they don't work, and they have fuck-all to do. And they don't care about peoples school runs. Probably assume the kids can take themselves to school!

If you can't be in when 'essential works' come along, well... that's not their problem. 🙄

My friend is in a H.A. property, and they were doing 'essential remedial work on the outside of the house' (done every 5 years,) last year, and she said 'please let me know when you are ready to come around, so we can agree a date. I work nights and will need to make sure I'm not working.' She didn't want them clunking around with the radio on loud, and 3 or 4 mens voices chatting shit outside her windows when she was asleep.

They didn't let her know. They just turned up one Monday morning at 9.30am when she was fast asleep in bed after a long 12 hour 8-8 night shift. She heard the radio, their voices laughing and shouting, and tools and stuff banging about. Then a big long bang bang bang on the door. They were knocking to ask if they could use to toilet! She shouted out of the window for them to pack up and GO as it's not convenient. They left.

She got a letter saying she was contravening the terms of the tenancy by 'not allowing' the men to do the work. She said 'they can come by all means, but I work nights, and sleep in the day, so I need to know when they're coming, because I won't sleep with them outside working! So I need to make sure I'm off! How would YOU like it if workmen came to do work on YOUR house between 1.00am and 7.30am when you were sleeping, and had work the next morning?!!!'

As I said, they always assume people are always in, they have no job, and they have fuck-all to do. I would put in a complaint @HAunreasonable

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If i need something doing in my house I tell the service provider when I'm going to be available and they work their appointments around me.
Like this week. We needed a plumber. He said he could do Tuesday, but that doesn't work with our schedules. We explained that and he said he could do this evening, so that's when he's coming.

HA repairs people seem to be notorious for this. I've a friend with disabilities who lives in this type of accommodation. They tell friend they'll be doing the job between 8am - 6pm on X day. Then they ring at 5.30pm to tell friend the can't manage to get to them.
So friend has been sitting at home all day waiting, for nothing.

You might've tried this but just incase: next time, when you leave for the school run tape or blu-tack a note to the door saying 'just on the school run, back by 9:15 - here is my mobile number'

In my experience no workman has ever left after reading the above, they don't mind spending 30 mins in their van drinking a coffee or whatever, it's just that they won't hand around if they don't know when you'll be back. I would bet good money that whoever you speak to in the office hasn't passed details of the school run to the team on the ground!

Not true. Programs of works are planned in the future, it's not personal and in the main works cannot be scheduled to suit every tenant.
Even private householders are NOT given specific detailed timescales anymore.

What is wrong with some of the people on here? Sneery, horrid comments because it's a HA property?

Firstly, rent isn't free, is it? People pay their rent. I live in a HA property because I had to flee Domestic Violence and the perpetrator had our house repossessed without my knowledge. I had a mortgage.

The rent in my HA property is over double what my mortgage payment was.

Subsidised? By the tax payer? I AM a tax payer. I'm a full time professional with multiple degrees and I've paid taxes all my life. I pay rent like anyone else does.

As for the comments that people are lucky to have HA properties... Why? We pay for them. I'm not lucky. In fact, it was very unlucky to be abused for years, lose my home, never be able to get a mortgage again, suffer with PTSD and injuries from when he broke my back, etc. I'm not lucky. I just rent a house.

OP, if your children are disabled (and yes, ADHD does come under a disability), they have to make reasonable adjustments. I'm disabled and have had workers come out on a Saturday, because at one point, I couldn't move from my bed to answer the door, and I absolutely was not having DH lose a day's pay for a boiler check.

Leave a note on your door saying school run, back at x.xx

Yes it is also if you are not claiming dla for him claim that now. Won’t help with this situation though you have my sympathy. I would speak to your MP re the HA situation

But that's not unique to HA owners.

I've lost count of the number of times I've had to take a day off because the appointment time is "anywhere between 8 and 1" and then they don't turn up or come at 3.30 or the next day.

People are always complaining about tradesmen turning up late or cancelling at the last minute, or clocking off early and leaving jobs half-done. It's a right pain in the arse but it's just part of being an adult and having your own home, unfortunately.

I work for a company that does call outs for housing associations. We would always try and accommodate such a request.

I think most companies would, the HA is their customer, after all. My guess is in this instance the HA probably can't be arsed to ask. So they're not telling the contractor, the contractor is turning up, finding the OP not there but not to know she'll be back shortly, so leaving and reporting the OP not there, and nobody's joining the dots. The note on the door is a good shout, especially with the packet of biscuits!

Keep the kids at home for the day. Tell the school they’re ill.

My family are with a HA. I was working from their house whilst everyone was out to wait for repairs. I was sitting right by the door, on the kitchen table with my laptop - I heard the postman. My mum then received a call that they came by and nobody was home. It was clearly a lie.

They can’t threaten any action - sometimes they can be so strange.

@MikMikiamo great post. So sorry you had to go through all that though