INTERNAL TRANSFER

If you are an existing tenant of Osprey Housing, to be considered for an internal transfer you must register for an application through  www.thesehomes.com

We will favour 25% of all vacancies for internal transfers and indicate on the advert where priority has been given for existing Osprey tenants.

Alternative HOUSING OPTIONS

VERY SHELTERED HOUSING - JARVIS COURT, FRASERBURGH

Osprey Housing  own a Very Sheltered Housing Complex in Fraserburgh comprising of 20 self contained housing units, with care provided in partnership by Aberdeenshire Council. Osprey hold the waiting list for this complex and application forms can be obtained by calling Westhill office on 01224 548000 or Jarvis Court direct on 01346 511802.

LOW COST HOME OWNERSHIP

Scottish Government Open Market Shared Equity Scheme. The Open Market Shared Equity Scheme aims to help first time buyers on low to moderate incomes who wish to purchase a home on the open market but cannot afford to pay the full market price for a property.

The following priority groups may apply to the scheme:

• First time buyers
• Tenants of a local authority or housing association
• Members of the armed forces, forces veterans, widows, widowers, and other partners of service personnel
• Disabled people

Applicants pay for the majority share (between 60% - 90% based on their income) with the Scottish Government helping to fund the remainder of the price of the property. There are however limits set on the price of homes that can be bought, based on the size of the property and its location.

The scheme is administered by Grampian Housing Association on behalf of the Scottish Government.

For further information and to apply please visit www.grampianhousing.co.uk or contact the Sales and Leasing Co-ordinators on 01224 202900 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Our Homes

Osprey Housing provide affordable homes to rent to people throughout North East of Scotland. We currently own over 1700 homes with more being developed across Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen City and Moray. These range from 1 bedroom flats to 5 bedroom family accommodation within the areas that we operate.

Our stock is mainly comprised of general needs housing however we do also own supported accommodation properties and a Very Sheltered Housing Complex, which are allocated in partnership with Aberdeenshire Council.

If you are interested in applying for a property with Osprey please see 'Looking for a Home' for more information.

This interactive map shows the Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen City and Moray geographical areas and the table below details the towns within which Osprey own properties.

Settlements Map

Click on a house icon to view the housing details for that area.

Osprey Housing are continuing to build new properties across all Local Authority Areas we operate in.

Details of each of our new developments which have begun construction

Aberdeen City

Countesswells

Ellon Road, Bridge of Don

Aberdeenshire

Alford

Laurencekirk

Peterhead

Moray

Lossiemouth

LOOKING FOR A HOME

APPLYING FOR AN OSPREY PROPERTY

Osprey Housing provide affordable homes to rent to people throughout North East of Scotland. We currently have over 1700 properties with more being developed across Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen City and Moray. For more information about our housing stock, house sizes and where they are, please see Our Homes

Osprey Housing have recently joined Thesehomes.com where we maintain our own waiting list and internal transfer list. We also work in partnership with Aberdeenshire, Moray and Aberdeen City Councils, with whom we take direct nominations for 50% of our vacancies.

If you have any queries regarding your online application with the relevant local authority or require assistance please contact Aberdeenshire Council on 08456 081203, Aberdeen City Council on 03000 200292 or Moray Council on 01343 543451.

If you are currently an Osprey tenant and would like to move to another Osprey property, please see our information on Internal Transfer and Mutual Exchange

Your Neighbourhood

Neighbour disputes & ASB

• Neighbour Disputes - There are occasions when disputes flare up between neighbours. If any problems arise you should, if you feel comfortable doing so, attempt to speak to your neighbour and settle the matter amicably. If you or any neighbours are experiencing problems that cannot be resolved you should consider contacting Police Scotland on 101 if it is appropriate in the first instance. Please also advise the Housing Management Team in writing, by telephone or call into the office.
• Mediation - The Group can offer cases to our Mediation service, which helps tenants resolve disputes. Mediation may be suggested by yourself, your neighbour or your Housing Officer to reach better outcomes for all parties involved.
• Anti-Social Behaviour - Anti-social behaviour is defined as behaviour by one household or an individual in an area, which threatens the physical or mental health or security of other households or individuals. It is important to remember that all tenants are responsible for their own behaviour and the behaviour of their visitors.We have a clearly defined policy and procedure for dealing with antisocial behaviour. If the anti-social behaviour includes a criminal act, this should also be reported to Police Scotland on 101. You can report the matter in writing, by telephone or by office visit to a member of the Housing Management Team. Each Local Authority also have an environmental Health department and an Anti-Social Behaviour Team which you can contact for advice.

Pets

Tenants who wish to keep any type of pet must seek permission from  Osprey Housing prior to obtaining the pet. A permission request can be sent be completed here or by calling our Customer Services Team. A maximum of two pets per household is stipulated by your Tenancy Agreement.

Owners must apply for permission to keep a pet and a decision will be made and communicated to the tenant within 28 days of the application being made. Requests for permission to keep a dangerous dog will require the applicant to produce an exemption certificate as part of their application.

Where legislation requires owners to take additional steps to ensure compliance and safety, these steps must be followed. For example, owners of XL bully breeds who have provided an exemption certificate and requested formal permission will also be required to muzzle the dog and walk it on a lead at all times.

We will not normally refuse permission and we will tell you about any terms and conditions that apply. We also reserve the right to refuse permission for some pets.

Tenants must not allow their pets to cause a nuisance to their neighbours or foul within the neighbourhood. Failure to adhere to this may result in permission to keep pets being revoked.

Running a Business From Your Home

If you wish to work from home, and could do so without disturbing your neighbours, permission may be granted and will be considered on an individual basis. For further information you should contact your Housing Officer. An application can be summited by filling out this form

Common Areas and Stair Cleaning

In some schemes, stair cleaning and open space maintenance is provided by contractors and charged through the service element of your monthly charges. Each tenant is responsible for contributing to the standards of the communal areas by ensuring repairs are reported and that the areas remain clean and tidy. This is an obligation of the Tenancy Agreement.

Gardens

Maintaining the garden area of your home is your responsibility to ensure the property remains clean, tidy and safe. This refers to grass cutting, weeds, disposal of rubbish and driveway areas. If you do not adhere to your tenancy responsibilities to maintain your garden, our team may contact you to arrange to bring the area up to standard. Failure to do so may result in Osprey arranging for a contractor to do the work and the cost of this will be recharged to you.

Assistance & Guidance

Tenancy Support Officer.

Our Tenancy Support Officer's Catriona Leggat and Laura Downing can offer a wide range of support services. You can contact them by completing the following  Support Referal Form or alternatively by mailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or calling through the Main Switchboard 01224 548000.

If you are struggling to pay your rent, heat your home, feed yourself or your family, source affordable clothing and furniture please get in touch to see how they may be able to help.

They can also provide advice or signpost you around money, debt and benefits, domestic abuse and mental health or disability issues. Please see the relevant tabs for further information and links to independent support.

Complaints & Compliments

Compliments and Feedback

Osprey is committed to providing an excellent service to customers, and part of this is responding to feedback from tenants. In this way, we can develop our services and make positive changes to improve outcomes.

We welcome all feedback from our customer and use comments and suggestions to help us improve our services. You can share your views with us in many ways. Send us an email, letter, speak to a member of staff or complete the online form here. 

Tenant satisfaction

We are committed to continually improving our services to tenants and satisfaction data is vital to this process. You will be asked for your feedback on our repairs service, housing services provision and other aspects of our service to you. Taking part in satisfaction surveys is voluntary however we appreciate your engagement in this process. You can also complete online feedback forms here.

Making a Complaint – Tenants Guidelines

If something goes wrong or you are dissatisfied with our services, please tell us. These guidelines describe our complaints procedure and how to make a complaint.

What is a complaint?

We regard a complaint as any expression of dissatisfaction about our action or lack of action, or about the standard of services provided by us or on our behalf. Unless the reason for your complaint is very serious, you should probably make an informal complaint first, on the telephone or in an interview. You may be able to get your problem solved, or at least learn more about it.

If your informal complaint does not resolve the problem, or if your problem is a serious one you can make a formal complaint.

What can I complain about?

You can complain about things such as:

• Failure to provide a service
• Dissatisfaction with our policy
• Standard of service
• Treatment by or attitude of a member of staff or contractor
• Failure to follow proper procedure
• Delays in responding to your enquiries or requests

What can’t I complain about?

There are some things we can’t deal with through the complaints procedure, these include but are not limited to:

• A routine and/or first time service request.
• Anti-social behaviour. This is dealt with via a separate procedure
• Requests for compensation
• Policy or procedure that has a separate right of appeal (ie, allocations policy)
• Issues that are in court or have already been heard by a court (or a tribunal)
• An attempt to re-open a previously concluded complaint where a final decision has been given You still have the right to contact the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman for an independent review.

How do I make a complaint?

You can make a complaint by phone, in writing, via email or in person at our office. You may request a home visit if you feel unable to express your concerns via the above methods.

It is easier to resolve complaints if they are made quickly and directly to Osprey. Please contact Osprey in the first instance and talk to a member of staff about how we can resolve your problem. You can also complete a form online here.

When making a complaint, it is important to provide as much information as possible at the initial stage to facilitate a quick resolution. Please tell us the following details;

• Full name and address
• As much information as you can about the complaint
• What has gone wrong
• How you want us to resolve the matter

How long do I have to make a complaint?

Normally, you must make your complaint:

• within six months of the event you want to complain about, or
• within six months of you finding out that you have a reason to complain, but no longer than 12 months after the event itself.

In exceptional circumstances, we may be able to accept a complaint after the time limit. If you feel that the time limit should not apply to your complaint, please contact us to explain why.

What happens when I have complained?

Our complaints procedure has two stages.

Stage 1 - Frontline resolution:

We aim to resolve complaints quickly and efficiently, therefore it is important you contact us as soon as there is a problem. This could mean an on-the-spot explanation or apology if something has clearly gone wrong, and immediate action will be taken to resolve the problem. We will give you our decision or an outcome of your complaint at Stage 1 in five working days or less, unless there are exceptional circumstances. If we can’t resolve your complaint at this stage, we will explain why and tell you what you can do next. We might suggest that you take your complaint to Stage 2.

Stage 2 - Investigation:

Stage 2 deals with two types of complaint: those that have not been resolved at Stage 1 and those that are complex and require detailed investigation. If you are making a complaint at Stage 2, please provide as much information as possible in relation to the complaint, as this will make it easier and quicker for our staff to help you. When using Stage 2 we will:

• acknowledge receipt of your complaint within three working days
• discuss your complaint with you to understand why you remain unhappy and what outcome you are looking for
• give you a full response to the complaint as soon as possible and within 20 working days. I

f our investigation will take longer than 20 working days we will tell you. We will agree revised time limits with you and keep you updated on progress.

What if I’m still not satisfied my complaint has been dealt with?

After we have fully investigated, if you are still dissatisfied with our decision or the way we dealt with your complaint, you can ask the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) to look at it.

SPSO Contact - Freephone 0800 377 7330. Online contact www.spso.org.uk/contact-us

Complaints to the Scottish Housing Regulator - Significant Performance Failures

If we are persistently failing to deliver services that meet the standards that are expected of us, and you have complained to us but you are still dissatisfied, you can complain to the Scottish Housing Regulator or bring their attention to a Significant Performance Failure. A significant performance failure is something that we do, or fail to do, that puts the interests of our tenants at risk. This is something that does, or could, affect all of our tenants. If we do not deal with the failure, you can contact the Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR). To contact the Scottish Housing Regulator and to find out more inmorfation on this please visit the SHR Complaints and Serious Concerns page.

Get Involved

Tenant Consultation, Participation & Feedback

We’re committed to involving tenants and residents in what we do and how we deliver our services.

By ‘involved’ we mean being able to influence decisions about the services you receive, and other issues affecting you, your home and the area where you live. Tenant involvement helps us make the right decisions, and enables us to identify and make any necessary changes and improvements to what we do or the way we do it.  The Group is committed to working with tenants to enable them to take part in, and influence, the decision making process on issues which affect them, their homes and the environment in which they live.

PARTICIPATION

To support to the development of Tenant Participation the Group will:

• Support members who wish to set up a Tenant Group in their area.
• Ensure that all tenants of ours have equal access to the necessary information, training and support to enable them to make informed decisions and to participate fully.
• Actively promote Tenants’ Organisations, the Register of Interested Tenants and individual tenants to become involved in the participation process.
• Encourage Tenant Participation regarding proposals which will significantly affect the tenant, such as rent reviews or major works to their home or environment.

Osprey Group have a Tenant Association (OTRA – Osprey Tenants and Residents Association) and actively encourages its tenants to engage with OTRA to discuss and organise matters in relation to where they live and the services we provide. OTRA are a Registered Tenant Organisation (RTO) which operates for Osprey tenants in the Aberdeenshire and Moray Areas. Essentially this is a group of tenants who are interested in Tenant Participation and meet on a regular basis throughout the year to help set the agenda for participation and address on-going issues which require discussion, debate and consultation.

Any tenant can join OTRA and the views of members are recognised as sample opinions of the general population of our tenants. Every effort will be made to expand the base of OTRA membership and engagement with under- represented groups is particularly sought. OTRA are pleased to be active members of North East Tenants Residents and Landlords Together (NETRALT). This is a partnership of social landlords working with tenants and residents to increase engagement throughout the North East. NETRALT received the Runner Up Award for TPAS Tenant Participation Champion of the Year 2013. More information on their activities and how to get involved via their facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/Netralt

OTRA members will receive training and guidance to fulfil their role. If you wish to become a member of OTRA please contact the group direct on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Or complete the get involved form here. Tenants wishing to raise a matter for the attention of the Panel can do so by contacting the Osprey office. Staff there will direct their query or comments to the Chairperson on the Panel

CONSULTATION

We are committed to consulting with tenants prior to any major decision being taken on proposals which may affect tenants, such as rent increases. Proposals made will be followed by a consultation periods allowing tenants time to respond with their views and comments. We will take account of tenants’ views and comments as part of their decision making process. Tenants will be advised of outcomes and be given reasons for the decision made. Consultation will take place in a variety of forms, such as:

• Consultation Events
• Comment Forms
• Surveys
• Questionnaires
• Register of Interested Tenants
• Tenant Group Meetings and Working Groups

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FEEDBACK

Feedback is crucial to help us improve services for tenants, please use this form to give as your thoughts.

Feedback Form

Feedback

We look forward to receiving your comments and questions.

If you wish to contact us directly please refer to our Contact Us section.

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