Report a Fault
Find out how to report a fault or damage in your student accommodation.
How to Report
We have a dedicated maintenance team, as well as trusted contractors, to ensure that we can make repairs quickly. It's important that you tell us straight away if you notice a fault or damage in your accommodation. You can do this by:
- letting us know at your reception, either in person or by email
- by submitting a repair request form for your residence:
- by contacting Security on 0191 208 6817 for urgent problems that occur out of hours
Response Times
We provide you with a home, and it's important to us that we maintain this to a high standard. To help us do this, we operate using the below target response times. This means that someone will come out to assess the repair within the stated times. We endeavour to complete repairs as soon as we can but this may take us longer, especially where we require specialist parts or contractors.
We'll respond to an emergency repair on the same day. We classify anything that poses a health and safety risk to people or to our buildings as an 'emergency'. Examples of an emergency repair include boarding up a smashed window, or isolating the water supply following a burst pipe. When responding to an emergency repair, we'll make the area safe. It's likely that we'll need to return at a later date to complete any remedial work.
We'll respond to an urgent repair within three days. We classify anything that has a significant impact on your accommodation as 'urgent'. Examples of an urgent repair include restoring access to power or the water supply. It may also include replacing a defective appliance - for example the only cooker or light source. In some instances, we may need to provide you with temporary facilities until a full repair is completed.
We'll respond to a routine repair within seven days. We classify routine repairs as anything that has an impact on your enjoyment of the accommodation. Routine repairs are important but they do not pose a risk or have a significant impact on your use of the accommodation. Examples of routine repairs include fixing a dripping tap or replacing non-essential furniture.
Carrying Out the Repair
We understand that waiting for a repair can sometimes be frustrating. We're keen to minimise any stress and disruption to you. To achieve this, we will:
- respond to your repair promptly
- endeavour to carry out the repair as soon as possible
- provide access to alternative facilities when repairs are delayed
- complete repairs to a high standard
- use approved and appropriately trained contractors
- always carry appropriate identification
We will not give notice when attending to an emergency or urgent repair, or before coming to complete a repair that you've requested.
To enable us to complete repairs efficiently, we are trialling a 'maintenance day' each week at Castle Leazes. This means that our Maintenance Team will be at your residence, on a specified day to complete jobs. You will receive notice when this trial begins, but you will not receive weekly notice emails after this. We will continue to give seven days' notice for any planned maintenance scheduled outside of our 'maintenance day'.
We need your help to make sure that things run smoothly. We expect you to:
- report maintenance, repair, or replacement requests promptly
- not to alter any part of the building
- not to interfere with the building's pipes, cables, wires, or sensors
- allow access so repairs and maintenance can be completed
- show courtesy to staff when attending to a repair
- comply with staff requests to ensure that they have a safe space to work in