Category: Residents Management Company

Site Wide Costs Investigation

As reported over recent months, there has been an on-going investigation into the monies collected from residents in relation to the site-wide estate charge. This has been a protracted process as POD did not have access to the detailed ledger information as previously held by DJC and as such directors could not determine until recently whether expenditure was legitimate.

Directors have worked on the principle that residents should only pay for the proportion of site-wide land that is available for use by the community and despite promises by the land owners about other areas being accessible, the only land that has been made available thus far has been the Western Mitigation Area. The Western Mitigation area has however been transformed over the last 2 years into a lovely communal space and is regularly used by residents. Further enhancements are anticipated over the coming months with the addition of benches in this area.

Directors have undertaken an analysis of accounts information covering the last 2 years and as a result POD has now been instructed to return £100 per year per unit (pro-rata for those that moved in part way through one of those years) to residents in relation to monies collected for the site-wide estate charge. This represents a rebate of 80% and reflects that residents have not had use of the majority of communal site-wide land.

For private owners, the credits from 2018/19 and 2019/20 will be used in the first instance to clear any unpaid arrears on their individual account. The default position will be that any remaining credit will be held on unit holders accounts unless a request is specifically made to POD for the return of the balance.

For tenants of Housing Associations, including those with shared ownership, the credits from 2018/19 and 2019/20 will be returned to your respective Housing Association and you will need to discuss with them how the refund will be managed.

Directors have made clear to POD that no payments in relation to the 2020/21 site-wide estate charge are to be released until the credits can be evidenced and as such any monies already collected from unit holders must continue to be held in a separate control account.

In addition directors have made clear that further discussion will be required with the Site-Wide Management Company to confirm the trajectory for further land being made available together with an analysis of proposed costs for 2020/21. No payments will be released until this information has been communicated with residents and until directors are satisfied that residents are receiving best value in relation to communal site-wide land.

Andrew Wright, Director
Channels (Chelmsford) Management Company Ltd

Residents Meeting: Questions

Please find a list of all questions here (in pdf format) that have been submitted in advance of the Residents Meeting scheduled for Monday 27th July together with responses for your review.

Please do read the detailed responses as they may well provide answers to the questions you have. There will of course be a chance for residents to ask further questions and discuss any concerns at the meeting.

The meeting will be conducted using the Zoom video conferencing facility on Monday 27th July at 7.30pm using the details below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82667946492

The directors look forward to meeting residents on Monday 27th July.

Appointment of RMC Directors

Further to the resignation of one of our directors, and after board discussion, the decision has been taken to increase the number of directors. This will facilitate the sharing of responsibilities and will in turn improve governance and transparency for members.

If you would like to join the board of the Management Company as a director, please submit an expression of interest statement outlining how you would work with the current board and POD to fulfil the legal obligations as set out in the Articles of Association.

Please review all information about the RMC on this website and more importantly the letter that has been sent to residents as it includes further key information about ways of working and eligibility.

Please ensure your expression of interest statements are submitted via the form at www.ccmc-ltd.uk/director-appointments no later than midday on Friday 14th August for consideration by directors. Any statements received after this time will not be considered.

Directors will be appointed to take office from 1st September 2020 and will continue until the next Annual General Meeting in January 2021.

Please note there will be a Directors Meeting week commencing 7th September which newly appointed directors will be expected to attend.

Notice of Residents Meeting

Dear Eagle Rise & Aqua Verde Residents,

Further to 2020/21 Service Charge demands being sent out by POD Management, and subsequent to feedback received, directors of the Residents Management Company will be holding a virtual meeting to provide clarity about the Service Charge Budget and to answer questions that residents may have.

The meeting will be conducted using the Zoom video conferencing facility on Monday 27th July at 7.30pm using the details below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82667946492

All residents are welcome to attend however directors ask that you carefully read the content of a letter that will be received by every household imminently as this contains information about the meeting, the rules that will be used in conducting it and an option to delay payment of 2020/21 Service Charge increases.

The letter can be downloaded/viewed (pdf) here:

To assist in efficient running of the meeting, you can submit a question in advance. All questions received will be collated and addressed prior to the open forum and may well cover most concerns.

Please only submit one question per resident and please ensure that all submissions are received no later than midday on Wednesday 22nd July.

You can submit your question via www.ccmc-ltd.uk/ask

The directors look forward to meeting residents on Monday 27th July.

Service Charge Update

Dear Eagle Rise & Aqua Verde Residents,

By way of a reminder, residents are obligated, as stated in their deeds, to pay an appropriate fee (Service Charge) for upkeep of the estate in perpetuity whilst they remain the owners of their properties. The council will not take on any responsibility for the communal areas. There is also an obligation for residents, as part of planning conditions, to contribute to the upkeep of site-wide estate areas.

The Service Charge period runs from 1st July to 30th June and notifications will be sent to residents and Housing Associations imminently with the expectation that payment on account is made on or before 1st July 2020.
Notifications will be sent by POD Management with detailed supporting information which explains how the Service Charge has been derived.

A reminder of why we have a Residents Management Company and what it does can be found here.

Channels Estates & COVID19

As you may be aware POD Management completed a procurement exercise at the end of 2019 and secured Channels Estates to deliver a Grounds Maintenance service on behalf of the Management Company and its resident members.

In response to recent concerns regarding the Coronavirus outbreak, Channels Estates have provided assurance that they are taking every necessary precaution to keep the risk of exposure to the virus to a minimum. As things stand Channels Estates are operating from a “business as usual” position and are following Government guidelines very closely in order to ensure the safest environment for clients and their staff.

Channels Estates have stated their firm commitment to fulfil all contractual obligations which the Management Company deems to be full delivery in line with the contractual service specification unless notified otherwise.

If the position changes, a further update will be provided.

RMC Directors Appointed

Dear all,

The RMC Annual General Meeting took place on Thursday 9th January. Five members put themselves forward to become directors and as no objections were raised by any other members present, they were duly appointed. POD Management, acting as Company Secretary, will progress relevant paperwork to complete the appointments and register them with Companies House. The RMC directors are:

Andrew Wright (Acting Chairman)
Tom Butler
Chloe Tron
Carroll Crumpen
Temitope Akinyemi

For information, the Chairmans Report which was presented at the AGM can be viewed or downloaded here.

The directors will hold their first formal meeting in due course where roles will be assigned and a plan for the coming year will be agreed.

If you would like to contact the directors, the easiest way is to use the Contact Form on this website.

Andrew Wright, Director
Channels (Chelmsford) Management Company Ltd

RMC Director Appointments

As previously flagged, existing RMC directors will resign at the AGM on Thursday 9th January and new directors will be appointed.

If you wish to stand it is important to understand that as a director of a limited company, you must:


Directors are able to hire other people to manage some of these things day-to-day (for example, POD Management or an accountant) however it is the directors that remain legally responsible for the company’s records, accounts and performance.

To ensure there is sensible and practical governance in relation to the running of the RMC, the following will be proposed at the AGM:

  • To limit the number of directors to either 3 or 5 and to rotate annually;
  • To use dedicated sub committees;
  • To assign each director specific roles;


Each Director is expected to be up to date with their service charge payments and regular attendance at board meetings is mandatory.

I look forward to seeing you on Thursday evening at the Annual General Meeting.

Andrew Wright, Director
Channels (Chelmsford) Management Company Ltd