AN increase of £1.6million for maintenance work has been announced by Ascham Homes.

The not-for-profit company, which maintains council-owned homes, said it is making in increase from Apil in an effort to improve resident satisfaction.

The money will come from a "restructuring" of staff at the company as part of its budget strategy, which will result in staffing costs being cut by about £2million.

Chair of Ascham Homes Paul Lowenberg said: “Residents have told us that their number one priority is improvement of maintenance.

"Therefore we have realigned our budget to enable more money to be directed to meeting this need."

He added: "“The decisions we have taken were difficult ones, but are essential to ensure that every pound of available money is used to provide quality services and achieve value for money."

Ascham Homes says it will consult with residents on how the money - which is intended for repairs, maintenance and decorations - should be spent.

A final decisions will be made at an Ascham Homes board meeting in March.

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