This festive season our Aberdeen and Elgin offices will close at 1pm on Tuesday 24 December 2019 and will re-open at 9am on Friday 3 January 2020.

We wish all our customers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

During the festive office closure the following arrangements have been made:

PAYMENT OPTIONS (rent, occupancy payment, factoring charges etc.)

ALLPAY
If you have an existing Allpay card please remember that you can pay your monthly charges by debit or credit card, either by telephone on 0844 557 8321, or online at www.allpayments.net. You can also pay by cash or card at your local PayPoint outlet (locations listed at www.paypoint.ie/locator).

If you do not have an Allpay card and wish to apply for one, then please contact our office and we shall set up an account for you.

ONLINE BANKING
If you have online banking you can make a direct payment to us. Please see the Pay Your Rent page on our website for more information.

EMERGENCY REPAIRS
During the holiday period, we operate a 24-hour emergency repairs service only. Any non urgent repairs should be reported when we reopen on Friday 3 January 2020.

If you need to report an emergency repair (for example, a significant leak or total loss of power), then please telephone 0300 123 9279.

For tenants experiencing problems with your heating, please telephone Heatcare Oil & Gas directly, on 01343 842042.

Please note that only communal repairs can be dealt with for sharing owners and owner occupiers.

A new image shows the destruction caused by the fire that tore through Aberdeen’s old Victoria Road Primary in May.

The Torry blaze caused the roof to partly cave in and left the building severely damaged.

Police and the fire brigade launched a joint probe into the incident but efforts were hampered because the granite structure was deemed unsafe.

Aberdeen City Council handed over the keys for the building to its new owners, Grampian Housing Association and its partners the Torry Development Trust, last month.

The new pictures were taken while architect Steven Berry from David Murray Associates visited the 141-year-old building this week.

They showed the partly demolished structure with charred debris lying on the ground nearby.

Mr Berry was on the site to carry out a full internal assessment of the property including the parts damaged by the fire.

His inspection will also help Grampian Housing Association draw up designs for its proposed housing development, with a planning application due to be submitted in August.

A spokeswoman for the Huntly Street-based housing association said: “Since Grampian Housing Association took ownership of the site, we are following through on our commitment to undertake safeguarding works and work to ensure that the buildings are wind and watertight.

“Assessment of the fire damage is ongoing but it is our intention to progress with our plans to provide quality affordable homes on the site.

“The development will assist people who want to stay in a new setting on Victoria Road.

“When complete, there will also be community facilities on the site and an initial meeting is planned with Aberdeen City Council to take these plans forward.

“The partnership approach by Grampian Housing Association and Torry Development Trust aims to secure the restoration and reuse of two fine structural sound granite buildings for future generations.”

Aberdeen South MP Ross Thomson has welcomed progress to give the school, which was closed in 2008, a new lease of life.

Mr Thomson said: “After a rocky and challenging start, the Victoria Road project looks to have a bright future. 

“I am proud to be the MP for a constituency which has forward-thinking community groups like Torry Development Trust.

“I know it will be a cornerstone of the community and a lovely place to live.”

Torry and Ferryhill councillor Catriona Mackenzie said people in the area will be happy that the proposed project is moving forward.

She said: “It’s good to see that retaining the granite buildings is still a priority and I’m sure folk across Torry will be pleased to hear work is progressing.”

Victoria Road Primary School was built in 1878 after the Fishermen’s Association of Old Torry agreed to pay £1,400 towards the cost.

Dr Abhishek Agarwal (above left), course leader for the Aberdeen Business School MBA Programme at Robert Gordon University (RGU) has been elected as the new chairman of Grampian Housing Association, while Jim Cargill (above right) takes over as vice- chairman.

Dr Agarwal’s expertise spans the areas of strategy, business models, circular economy, social housing, governance and sustainability. The Association appreciates the support given by RGU in assisting Dr Agarwal with this important community role.

Commenting on his election, Dr Agarwal said: “It is a challenging time to take on the role of chair of Grampian Housing Association. We operate in a demanding environment but I feel that with my background in strategy and passion to help organisations realise their goals, I am well placed to ensure Grampian achieves its ambitious future plans.

“At RGU we place significant importance on sustainability and supporting our local community and this is an example of how we are committed to working in partnership with other organisations to provide a positive contribution to our society.”

Mr Cargill is currently chief executive of PlanSea Solutions Ltd, an independent commercial enterprise of RGU and a director of Calibre International Ltd, a business consultancy. He has just completed a second term as a board member of Montrose Port Authority and is also an advisor to NESTRANS (North East of Scotland Transport Partnership).

Jim Cargill said: “With my extensive experience in business development roles I welcome this opportunity to volunteer at Board level and I am looking forward to supporting Abhishek in driving Grampian’s strategic direction forward.”

Neil Clapperton, chief executive of Grampian Housing Association, congratulated Abhishek and Jim on their election and said: “These new appointments come at a time when our business transformation process is underway and I am confident that the experience brought by the chair and vice chair will help us realise our ambitious agenda.

“This will see the move to a new operating model designed to ensure that feedback from our tenants drives service improvements and delivers on our commitment to digital participation.”

One challenge for the association is ensuring that the needs of applicants for new homes are addressed in line with Scottish Government targets for new build homes while maintaining and improving service quality to meet the expectations of existing customers. This is reflected in the 500 new homes target set by the Association over the next five years. There is also a commitment to increase invest in its properties through installing new bathrooms, new kitchens and window replacements.

Members receiving the annual review at the recent annual general meeting heard about the association’s successes in: tenant participation and scrutiny; energy efficiency, including the installation of TESLA battery storage in properties with solar panels; support for tenants through its money advice and housing support projects; and building new homes for social rent at locations in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire.

A milestone has been reached in the regeneration of the former Victoria Road School in Torry, Aberdeen. 

Transfer of ownership of the site has now completed and the keys have been handed over to Grampian Housing Association as the new owner.

In September 2018, Aberdeen City Council announced Grampian Housing Association as the preferred bidder in a partnership project with Torry Development Trust (TDT). 

Neil Clapperton, chief executive of Grampian Housing Association said:

“It is an exciting day being able to finally announce that Grampian is the new owner of this site.  Through our partnership with Torry Development Trust we welcome the opportunity to work with the people of Torry to present a shared regeneration proposal.  Our plans will bring together affordable housing and community facilities to breathe new life into the heart of Old Torry.

“However, the first steps will be to follow through on our initial commitment to make sure that the buildings are wind and watertight.”  

The development will provide quality affordable homes to meet varying housing needs including families, couples and single people.  It will assist people who want to stay in a new setting on Victoria Road and when complete, will also include community facilities.

The partnership approach by Grampian Housing Association and Torry Development Trust aims to secure the restoration and reuse of two fine structural sound granite buildings for future generations.