Queenswood News

There has been some confusion lately about the standards required when lessees replace their garage doors. To clarify the issue, Queenswood Management Association has taken the opportunity to spell out what is required, and added the details to the rules allowed under section 3(f) of the lease, as follows:

“Lessees wishing to replace their garages doors may do so without prior approval provided that the 3 door is similar to the original door, i.e. it is an up-and-over style door, and its dimension are the same as the door it is replacing. It must also be painted or powder-coated in the standard garage door colour, which is black. Should the standard garage door colour be changed in future when the external decorations are done, then doors that are replaced following the colour change must be painted or powder-coated in the new colour. Lessees who propose to deviate from any of these minimal specifications for any reason must obtain approval in advance.”

The full list of covenants and rules can be found here.

Queenswood Gardens was built over 50 yeas ago, and it’s possible that the electrical systems in your flat and wiring checked to see if it’s up to the job. We’ve added a few thoughts on this, and EICRs (electrical installation condition reports), to our FAQ page – please take a look at it (it’s at the bottom of the page).​

The terrible fire at Grenfell Tower five years ago remided everybody at Queenswood Gardens about fire safety.  In addition to publishing the joint Queenswood Gardens Ltd/Queenswood Management Association Ltd Fire Safety Strategy document, we have adopted the Local Government Association’s document on fire safety standards for purpose-built blocks of flats as our guidelines.  You can find links to the strategy paper and the LGA’s document here.

It is especially important that you should note the recommendations covering front doors to flats. To address adequate fire safety, QMAL and QGL require that any newly-fitted front door must meet the FD60S standard.  It must also have an automatic door closer, be fitted with intumescent strips, and have suitable smoke seals to protect letter boxes.

“We’ve had a couple of instances recently when there have been major leaks from one flat into another. If you have a leak in your flat, it is your responsibility to get it repaired. If there is a leak into your flat from another, then please report it without delay to Jennings and Barrett on 020 3598 9665 so that they can deal with it. If the leak occurs outside office hours, then we have an arrangement with C & M Cleaning and Maintenance Services under which you can call them out to fix the problem, with QMAL paying their charges and recovering them from the responsible owner once the leak has been dealt with. You can contact C & M on 020 8506 2014 or 07956 297312. See more details about leaks here.

Did you know that you can get fresh milk delivered to your doorstep, along with a range of other groceries?  Parker Dairies deliver three times a week to Queenswood Gardens – Monday, Wednesday & Friday.  Milk comes in reusable glass bottles, which cut down on single-use plastic bottles.  You will find their contact details on the Useful Links/Numbers page of the website.

There has been quite a lot of coverage in the press recently about Wanstead.  The Evening Standard voted Wanstead as one of the top ten places to live in London.  Metro also has high marks for Wanstead, and the Sunday Times considers Wanstead as one of the top places to live in the whole of the United Kingdom.

The Wanstead Safer Neighbourhood Team (“SNT”) from the Metropolitan Police have been patrolling Queenswood Gardens in response to complaints to them from a number of residents, and from Queenswood Managment Association Ltd, about vandalism and anti-social behaviour (“ASB”).  The SNT have already met with residents of Block A to discuss vandalism and ASB (including theft of parcels, shoes and lightbulbs, and the use of drugs) in the block.  They will be holding meetings across the estate, block-by-block, to discuss vandalism, anti-social behaviourm and other issues with residents over the coming weeks.  They have assured us that the police will do whatever it takes to have the vandals apprehended sooner or later.

There have been a number of incidents of vandalism & anti-social behaviour recently across Queenswood Gardens.  A small group of youths (believed to be four or five boys and one girl) have been getting into blocks and damaging fixtures and fittings.  They have also left cigarette burns on the new carpets.  It appears that they are being “buzzed in” by one or more residents (possibly children).  Please DO NOT “buzz in” anybody whose identity you do not know.

 In response to a number of requests, a cycle rack has been installed for the general use of all residents.  It is located between the rear of block B (“The Beeches”) and the front of block A (“The Acorns”).  A second bike rack has been installed by block F; we are actively looking for a site for a third rack.

We have revised how we deal with disputes between neighbours, to make sure our procedures treat all parties in an even-handed way.  All residents, and all those lessees who do not live at Queenswood Gardens, should have received a circular letter explaining how the system works.  You can see a copy of the letter here, and find a copy of the form you’ll need to complete if you want us to take up your case here.

If you want to report an abandoned vehicle on the public roadway at Queenswood Gardens to Redbridge Council, you can now do this through their website at https://www.redbridge.gov.uk/report/abandoned-vehicle  You will need to provide information about the vehicle and your contact details.

We have expanded the information about both Queenswood Gardens Ltd and Queenswood Management Association Ltd that is available through this website.  The information available now includes historical company accounts and minutes of annual general meetings.  You can find this information by going to the specific company under the “About Us” tab, then clicking the links to “AGM Minutes” or “Accounts”.

If you have bulky items that you want to get rid of, Redbridge Council now offers a free bulky waste disposal service.  Previously, free disposal was only available to those who were disabled, over the age of 60 or receiving Job Seeker’s Allowance.  Now it is free to all residents of the borough.  Free collection is based on a points system – full details of how this works can be found at www2.redbridge.gov.uk/cms/parking_rubbish_and_streets/rubbish_and_recycling/bulky_waste.aspx.

If you make use of this service, any items you leave out for disposal should only be put out on the day that they are to be collected, and clearly labelled so that we know they have not just been dumped.

Storing bicycles and other items in the laundry drying areas is not permitted.  Any bicycles or other items that are left in the drying areas may be removed and disposed of without further notice.  Residents who use locking devices to attach bicycles to the fencing round the drying areas that cause any damage – including during their removal – will be charged the cost of repairs and a £25.00 administration fee.

 Our new parking managers, UK Parking Control Ltd, have settled in after a few teething troubles and seem to be on top of the job.  One point to make a note of is that if you park your car so that it straddles any of the lines that mark out the individual bays, you may well get a parking penalty notice.  Please make sure that you know the rules regarding parking in the bays — they are listed on the UKPC notices that are dotted around Queenswood Gardens.

Following representations from lessees, the Queenswood Gardens Ltd  board has reviewed its policy regarding an outright ban on fitting replacement windows supplied by Anglian Home Improvements and Crystal Windows.  Whilst we still do not recommend them because of previous problems, the ban has been lifted.  However, lessees who choose to fit windows supplied by either of these two firms should note that QGL does not endorse them.  You can read the revised guidance on replacement windows here.

On a couple of occasions recently, residents have arranged for their energy companies to do work — changing a meter, for example — that has required access to the utility cupboard in the common hallway.  However, they failed to check that access would be available, resulting in a wasted visit by the energy company.  Remember that if you think you will need access to the cupboard in your block, you should contact Jennings & Barrett, giving them at least two full working days notice of the impending work.  That means, for example, that if work is schedule to be carried out on a Thursday, you need to contact Jennings & Barrett on the previous Monday at the latest.  If work is scheduled for a Monday, then you need to contact them on the previous Wednesday.  If you don’t contact them with enough notice, then access to the cupboard will not be available.

 Sadly, vandalism is almost an everyday part of life.  Observant residents will have noticed that from time to time, cars at Queenswood Gardens have been damaged — sometimes being scratched but often having windows broken.  If you leave valuables in your car — especially at night — that are in full view, then this is a temptation to the opportunist thief.  Please make sure that you don’t leave valuables on view and if at all possible, if you have a garage, keep your car in it overnight.  And don’t forget to be vigilant — a few weeks ago, a resident alerted a board member to a couple of unsavoury characters hanging around the estate late one Sunday night; one was riding his bike around, potentially looking for chances to steal and the other was in a car — both were discovered hiding at the far end of blocks of garages.  If you see anything suspicious, don’t hesitate to alert the police.

A small number of residents have been abusing the parking permit system by partially obscuring part of a permit so that it appears to be valid for their vehicle.  Please note that any vehicle that is parked with a partially-obscured — or altered — permit will be liable for a parking charge ticket.

As we notified everyone in a circular letter, the new policy of suspending parking permits for lessees who are in arrears with their service charges and who fail to do anything to rectify the situation has now been introduced.  This is in line with the provisions of the lease, and is necessary if we are to keep service charges down to a level that is fair to all those lessees who do pay their service charges promptly.