For updates on the action DIO is taking to improve the performance of the accommodation contracts, please read the Families First Newsletters which can be found here: on Service Family Accommodation - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Online forms for in-home requests are now available on the Pinnacle website
Online forms are now available at In-Home Requests - Pinnacle Service Families to make it easier for families to submit in-home applications for pets, visitors, nannies/au pairs, minor encroachments or to run a business.
SFA and issues regarding charges from water providers
DIO has been alerted to some instances where families have been contacted directly by water providers to pay bills with the threat of escalation. Families in SFA do not pay directly for water charges. DIO is responsible for making payment to water providers for all SFA, whether homes are let or void.
If families are contacted by a water provider directly then they are asked to contact DIORDAccn-PFI@mod.gov.uk at the earliest opportunity. This will allow DIO to directly contact the provider to prevent any further escalation or action.
DIO is putting further processes in place to prevent this issue for families in the future.
Planning for Move-Ins, Move-Outs and removals this Summer
Summer is always the busiest period of the year for housing allocations and removals activity. The last week in July and first week in August are particularly popular dates and are usually fully booked several months in advance.
Whilst suppliers will always attempt to meet families’ preferred Move-In, Move-Out and removals dates, it may not always be possible to achieve this against the significant volume of requests received. This is because the removals industry is still experiencing staff shortages.
To help manage this particularly busy time and to ensure families’ needs are met:
Please only request services during this period if you are unable to move at any other time.
Where circumstances allow, please could accompanied personnel without children avoid planning for a move within the school summer holiday window.
Please ensure removals are booked via the Agility portal as soon as Assignment Orders are received.
Families do not need a confirmed delivery address to start this process but knowing the location will allow Agility to plan for the summer moves.
Once families have been allocated SFA, please confirm availability for removals before booking a move in and out appointments.
If families have any questions or concerns, then please contact Agility directly: Agility GRMS.
Broadband boost for Service personnel and their families
Better broadband is on the way for Service personnel and their families. Teams across Defence, working with industry partners have already improved broadband speeds and reliability for Service Family Accommodation (SFA).
Front Line Commands (FLCs), Defence Digital (DD) and the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) are driving improvements. 97% of SFA now has access to a high-quality broadband service, which is up from 79% a year ago.
Good broadband is no longer just a nice-to-have - it’s now recognised as key to the welfare of our people. Defence is determined to provide access to modern, reliable, and secure broadband that’s cost-effective for military staff and their families.
Initial studies showed that at the start of last year 15,000 of our 48,000 SFA were considered ‘disconnected’ — unable to satisfactorily connect to or use the internet consistently. In under a year, a small, agile DD and DIO team, supported by the FLCs, successfully increased SFA access to better broadband, which is now at 97% coverage.
This is a huge improvement, however there is more to do. The FLCs, DD and DIO continue to work with industry partners to develop solutions. Plans are in place to connect the remaining homes and get all SFA better broadband by 2025/26 at the latest.
How can families living in SFA report a broadband issue?
If you live in an SFA home and suffer from poor download speeds, please take a screenshot of your speed test along with the time and day of the reading and send this to ukstratcomdd-cis-fc-brdbnd@mod.gov.uk
Tackling damp and mould
A damp and mould taskforce was formed earlier this year to identify and tackle the issue, with the worst affected homes to be prioritised and dealt with as quickly as possible.
If you are experiencing issues with damp and mould, but have not yet reported the issue, please contact the National Service Centre (NSC) 0800 031 8628 and select Option 4 for damp and mould.
One of the NSC team will ask you a series of questions to assess the severity of the damp and mould issue in your home. Following this assessment, Pinnacle will then raise the initial task with Amey/VIVO and they will arrange for a specialist Damp & Mould ‘First Responder’ to visit your home.
As part of their visit, the First Responder may clean and treat areas of damp and mould. However, the main purpose of their visit is to:
- Assess the property to validate the telephone severity assessment
- Collect additional details about the issue
- Decide next steps including instructing professional surveys and/or scheduling works
- Provide advice on how to prevent or reduce damp & mould
- In severe cases, trigger a move-out
- If the First Responder decides that either a professional survey or remediation works are required, Amey/VIVO will contact you directly to arrange a follow-up appointment.
More information regarding damp and mould and ways to reduce condensation which can lead to damp and mould in the home can be found at: In my home – Damp and Mould - Pinnacle Service Families
