Midland Heart
Midland Heart owns and manages more than 32,000 properties across the Midlands. It provides affordable rented housing and homes for sale as well as care and support services.
The majority of Midland Heart properties in Lichfield District are advertised through Lichfield District Homes. Some Midland Heart properties are published on the Moving Soon website.
How to request a repair from Midland Heart
If you are a Midland Heart tenant and want to request a repair, the easiest way to book, track and change your repairs online on the Midland Heart app. Downloading the app is easy and it's available to all of Midland Heart tenants. Simply search ‘Midland Heart’ on the App store or Google Play.
You can also call the Midland Heart team on 0345 60 20 540. Monday to Friday, 8am - 6pm.
You can also private message Midland Heart on Facebook to book your repair.
Find out more about Midland Heart's approach to repairs, including viewing Midland Heart's complaints policy, and view a complaints guide.
Before requesting a repair, it's worth double checking what you are responsible for as a tenant:
Things you'll need to fix outside your home
- Changing locks if your lose your keys or are locked out
- Changing latches, bolts, catches or padlocks to gates and sheds, except those in communal areas
- Maintenance of your garden*
- Washing lines and post*
- Sheds, greenhouses and water butts
- Pest control of insects, birds, mice and other rodents*
- Garden fences between your property and your neighbour’s properties*
- TV aerials or satellite dishes*
- Any other external fixture or fitting you or a previous tenant have put in unless we have agreed to maintain it for you
- Keeping shared areas tidy and free from obstructions
- Midland Heart do not automatically insure tenant's furniture, belongings and other personal items against theft, fire, vandalism, burst pipes and other household risks. This is likely to be your responsibility.
*Unless in a communal area, in which case Midland Heart will be responsible for the repairs.
Things you'll need to fix inside your home
- Connecting and/or plumbing appliance such as a cooker, washing machine, dishwasher etc.
- Maintaining doors, handles, drawers and shelves
- Protecting kitchen units and worktops by keeping them free from burns, water damage and impact/scratches
- Filling small holes and cracks in plasterwork (up to 5mm wide)
- Unblocking baths, sinks and toilets
- Replacing bath/sink plugs, toilet seats, washers on taps, bath panels, towel rails and toilet roll holders
- Curtain rails and coat hooks
- Replacing light bulbs and fluorescent tubes (unless this is a bathroom sealed light)
- Testing and replacing batteries in smoke alarms
- Isolating water supply during leaks and removing any contents to minimise damage
What to expect when you request a repair
The Midland Heart team deal with repair requests in order of priority. Midland Heart's service standards also differ, depending on their red, amber, green traffic light service status that they publish on their website - find out more.
Gas repairs
| Type of repair | Description | Target timescales |
| Emergency | Works that present an immediate danger to customers or members of the public and/or will result in severe damage to property. Make safe/secure/isolate as minimum, repair if possible. If you think you can smell gas, telephone 0800 111 999 straight away. | Within four hours, regardless of service status |
| Urgent | Work that required urgent attention to prevent future damage to property with no immediate danger to person and/or property. | 24, 48 or 72 hours (green, amber or red) |
| Routine | Work that does not pose a significant risk to customers/public welfare or safety and will not cause further damage in the short term. | 14 or 25 days (green/amber or red) |
Other repairs
| Type of repair | Description | Target timescales |
| Emergency |
Works that present an immediate danger to customers or members of the public and/or will result in severe damage to property. Make safe/secure/isolate as minimum, repair if possible. Examples include an external door which won’t lock, an uncontainable water leak, having no power (outside of a powercut) or exposed electrical wires, or water coming into contact with sockets or wiring. |
Within 24, 48 or 72 hours (green, amber or red) |
| Routine | Work that does not pose a significant risk to customers/public welfare or safety and will not cause further damage in the short term. | Within 28 days (green/amber) or 28 working days (red) |
| Major repairs | Any repair involving a capitalised component replacement, e.g. kitchen, bathroom, roof, structural works that require the erection of permanent scaffold. | Within 90 days |
Appointments
For routine appointments you’ll be allocated one of the time slots below:
- Morning slot: 8am - 12noon
- Afternoon slot: 12noon - 5pm
- All day slot: 8am - 5pm
For routine repairs if Midland Heart cannot gain access to your home, they will rebook the repair with an extended service standard of 14 days from original service standard target
If you request a new date for your repair or have to change your appointment for any reason, an extension to their service standard will apply where necessary
If your repair can’t be fixed on the first visit, it will be completed under an extended service standard in line with Midland Heart's follow-up process.
Criminal damage
If your property gets damaged by someone you don't know, you will need to get a crime reference number from the police before booking your repair with the Midland Heart team.
Complaints about repairs
If the Midland Heart team do not resolve your repair in a timely manner, we would recommend you first speak to the Midland Heart Hub on 0345 60 20 540. They’ll guide you through the complaints process and log the complaint for you.
You can also visit www.midlandheart.org.uk/complaints to complain online, view the Midland Heart complaints policy, and view a complaints guide.
You can also email complaints to:
Stage 1: complaints@midlandheart.org.uk
Stage 2: stage2andombudsman@midlandheart.org.uk
If you need support in making your complaint, the Housing Ombudsman can help you.
What happens after you make a complaint
Once submitted, your complaint will be investigated by the Midland Heart customer solutions team.
| Stage | Description | When you will receive a response |
| Stage one | The Midland Heart customer experience team will investigate and respond to everything you raised in your complaint. | 10 working days |
| Stage two |
If you’re not happy with the stage one response, let the Midland Heart customer experience team know and request a stage two review. |
A functional director will aim to complete the review and respond to you within 20 working days. If your complaint is complex, the team may talk to you about extensions to the above timeframes |
Ombudsman complaints
If you're still dissatisfied after you’ve been through stage one and two of the Midland Heart complaints process detailed above, you can contact the Housing Ombudsman or refer your complaint to a designated person, such as a such as a local councillor or MP.
You can contact the Housing Ombudsman by:
- emailing info@housing-ombudsman.org.uk
- visiting the Housing Ombudsman's make a complaint page
- calling 0300 111 3000
- writing to the Housing Ombudsman Service, PO Box 1484, Unit D, Preston, PR2 0ET
The Housing Ombudsman may support you to try and reach a solution prior to this as part of their early resolution approach. For more information read their guidance on early resolution.
You can also refer your complaint to a designated person. They can help by trying to resolve your complaint or can refer your complaint direct to the Housing Ombudsman. More information about using a designated person is available on the Housing Ombudsman website.
For more details, you can read the Midland Heart's complaints policy.
When we can help
If you have been through the Midland Heart's complaints process and your concerns have not been resolved and you are living in unsafe or uninhabitable conditions that breach the housing health and safety ratings system (HHSRS) and need urgent support to safeguard you and/or your family's wellbeing, you can reach out to us and we may be able to offer support.
To contact us email enquiries@lichfielddc.gov.uk. Please provide as much detail as possible, including when you first raised the repairs request, when you first raised a formal complaint, and if possible please provide copies of the stage one and stage two complaint responses you have received, plus any photographs or evidence you would like us to look at.