On Tuesday the 29th of July, we held our 47th Annual General Meeting at Canolfan Soar. The meeting ensured that we reviewed our performance in the 2024/25 financial year and celebrate the achievements of our tenants and staff milestones.
A combination of 57 shareholders, tenants, staff and wider stakeholders joined us in our review and our celebrations. Chief Executive Karen Courts presented the Annual Report to the audience, highlighting the challenges that we have faced during the past financial year. Despite the challenges, Karen highlighted the key outcomes achieved, including:
- 54 new homes coming under management
- Investing £3.2 million into maintaining and improving homes
- 115 homes were let in the 2024/25 financial year with 78 of these going to people who were previously homeless.
- 341 Energy vouchers were issued totalling £18,346 in support
- Fit and Fed continued across the borough supporting 4,725 individual children and young people and provided 4,739 meals.
- 40 new heating systems were installed
- 14 new roofs were provided
- 29 new bathrooms were installed
- 15 new kitchens supplied
- 58 Solar PV systems installed
- 121 AICO environmental sensors set up
Tenant Awards
As well as the formalities of reviewing the business performance of the organisation, the evening was also an opportunity to celebrate our tenants and our staff. The annual Desley Reynolds Award celebrated the achievements of tenants and community groups who go above and beyond to support their community.
In partnership with Keep Wales Tidy, tenants of Dowlais Stables have transformed their shared garden into a meadow of biodiversity. As well as homing a butterfly garden, a bee hotel, and wildflower meadows, the garden is also home to four large raised beds for vegetables, a greenhouse, and a tool shed. The garden has become an area of tranquillity where residents relax and share the fruits of what they have sown. Quite befittingly, Desley was also once a resident at the Stables. Our first Desley Reynolds Award of the evening is to Dowlais Stables Community Garden.
Our next award went to a real champion of a community. Each community needs a leader that makes new residents feel warm and welcomed. This individual organises all the coffee mornings and the community bingo sessions. Nomination feedback for this person included: “”without him, I don’t think we would be able to have bingo. He helps keep a smile on our faces and makes everyone feel welcome”.
When it comes to making a difference in the community, this individual isn’t just good – they’re a full house of heart. In fact, I think we can agree: B-I-N-G-O, and Mike is their name-o! Our second Desley Reynold Award went to Mike Rowley, for bringing a smile to the Georgetown community.
Staff and Board
As highlighted in her welcoming speech, Karen Courts, CEO, stated that our staff are our biggest asset. To meet the needs of our tenants, we ensure that our staff are in the right roles, doing the right things and in the right ways at the right times to ensure we achieve our purpose. At this year’s AGM we celebrated key staff milestones with the following:
- Five years service for Jayne Lewis Governance Manager and Company Secretary
- Five years service for Gary Jennings Building Surveyor
- Five years service for Katrina Minney Finance Assistant
- Five years service for Iain Graham, Finance Data Analyst
We also gave thanks to Board members Jo Fairley and Kellie Thorne who will be stepping down from our Board. Both Jo and Kellie have supported us with their knowledge, skills and leadership and both will be missed. We wish them all the best for their future and hope that they won’t be strangers to Merthyr Housing or the wider Merthyr community.
We are looking forward to another strong 12 months, providing key help and support to our tenants and community, and to providing key homes to supporting the local housing needs.
You can view our full annual report here:https://www.mtha.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/REF26756-MTHA-Annual-Report-2024-2025-Digital-STP.pdf
