Financial statement issued by Hanover in relation to Cluny Gardens, Jordanhill, Glasgow.
Expenditure utilising your heading numbers
(22) Can you explain why the costs for the housing manager in 2020-21 were higher than the previous year and the reasons for this! As the manager was not providing a full range of services, was the manager not furloughed for some of this time and if so what proportion of his time and salary was paid by HMRC or the Scottish Government to Hanover. If not, then can you please explain why he was not furloughed for the time he was not working due to the pandemic restrictions and why this was not considered necessary given the residents pay his salary. Please provide details of all staff furloughed and the sums received.
(23) Ditto the previous item, the cleaner for common parts which were not being cleaned during the pandemic period. I further understand the cleaner was not around for a significant time and may have left employment?
(26) Can we have site of the grounds maintenance contract and instruction letter of appointment. It appears that the only grounds maintenance work carried out is primarily grass cutting. The bushes are severely overgrown and the attention to detail is somewhat questionable. It appears a lot of money for what is undertaken.
(32) Please explain further why there is a reduction in speech units within the complex and its relationship to a reduction in costs. Have alternative providers of this service been considered and if not why. Has it been tendered as other providers are available at similar costs as a comparison? This is an additional income stream to your company as I assume they are part of your overall business and not a separate entity, but you change a management fee on top. Is there open transparency as required by the 2011 Act.
(33) There is a sum for Care Inspectorate costs of £59.00 annually which I have disputed in the past. There are no services at this location which require a care inspectorate fee under their fee charter. Please advise why this is included and the reasons and copies of any application or correspondence with the Care Commission. It should be refunded in full to all residents. It appears to me that you are taking the care inspectorate fee for services at sites elsewhere and spreading the cost across the entire portfolio whether a benefit or not.
(36) Please provide details of the alarm and door entry expenditure and copies of the vouchers (invoices). Including the smoke detector repair/replacement which I would have thought this was fire related and should have been accounted under heading 35 and not 36. And why it was a common repair?
(38) You had sinking/reserve funds of £13,000.00 allowed for but only collected £12,000.00 within the year. Why was this? What happened to the other £1,000.00 allowed for. Please can you provide details of what the £13,000 was to be utilised for and the accumulated figures under each project that it was planned for. For example, replacement lighting etc. I also note that you use this fund to make up any shortfall in the general fund at the year end. This is highly unusual in general practice and contrary to the Deeds. I have seen Hanover correspondence that states that this money is non-refundable. Please confirm how you have arrived at this conclusion and where in writing this is binding upon the residents.
(39) The management fee appears to have increased by 3.9% during a Pandemic year when little or no work was carried out and no meetings were held or attended. Were any of the Hanover staff furloughed and if so who and to what extent and how much was paid by HMRC or the Scottish Government to Hanover and the % in relation to salaries overall. Why did the management fee increase and was this agree by the Property Council? Please can we see the mandate or minutes approving it.
Please can we have a copy of your valid management contract which was last agreed with the residents.
Please can we see a copy of your “Written statement of Services” per the 2011 Act which should have been prepared and issued back in 2011-2012.
Stripping out the employment costs of the warden and cleaner and the telecare and the sinking fund/reserve for future repairs the management cost is greater than what you spend on general repairs, maintenance, and insurance by a significant margin. How can this be? For every £1.00 spent your fee equates to almost £0.60p. In total your management fee equates to 20% of the total including monies in the sinking reserve fund whereby you are getting the full fee for nothing but collection.
Turning to the Financial Statement
(7) Please explain the “Excessive Absence Fund” and its prior use and intended use and where it was originally funded from.
(8) There is no interest earned on 52k of funds. Please explain and provide details of the arrangement you have with the current bank in accordance with the procedures and regulations set down in the 2011 Act.
3.5b Homeowners’ floating funds must be accounted for separately from your own funds, whether through coding arrangements or through one or more separate bank accounts.
3.6b in situations where a sinking or reserve fund is arranged as part of the service to homeowners, an interest-bearing account or accounting structure must be used for each separate group of homeowners.
Please confirm that a separate account exists for the sinking/reserve fund. Details of it and whom it is with.
