Tenants' Voice - Improving Services Annual Report

We decided to review the Community Safety service after tenant satisfaction was lower than 85%.

We decided to focus our review on:

• How easy is it for a tenant to report anti-social behaviour (ASB)
• How tenant expectations are managed when tackling ASB issues
• How tenant satisfaction is obtained and used to improve the service

To carry out the review, we:

• Received a briefing from Progress Housing Group colleagues telling us how reports of ASB are responded to
• Looked at information on the website
• Looked at standard letters
• Looked at how satisfaction information is received and used

We found that the following areas were working well:

• There is clear information on the website about the service and what tenants can expect
• It is easy to report ASB issues
• Tenants are told if their complaint is classed as level 1 or level 2 and when they can expect to get a response from the Community Safety Team
• Tenants and the Community Safety Team agree on what the next steps will be
• There is an app that can be used to record noise issues on a mobile device
• All tenants using the service receive a satisfaction survey

We also made nine recommendations on how the service could be improved further to provide a better experience for tenants.

Since completing the review, seven recommendations have been implemented, with two being progressed.

The completed recommendations have seen an improvement in the standard letters being used. They are now in plain English with a summary box, which clearly highlights information to tenants.

A link to the 24/7 Life & Progress tenant support and wellbeing service is also promoted on the Community Safety section of the website and included on all community safety letters sent to tenants.

Information on the website has also been improved, providing a link to the community trigger for all local councils and a link to testimonials from tenants who have had support from the service.

Tola, Head of Operations, told us why she valued the review carried out by tenants: “We welcomed this review of how we deliver the Community Safety service, particularly as some of the tenants involved in the review had direct experience of anti-social behaviour and how we deal with it.

We hope the improvements made will be positively received and will make a real difference to tenants experiencing anti-social behaviour.”

We chose to review the out-of-hours service, looking particularly at:

• How easy is it for a tenant to contact the out-of-hours service
• How tenant expectations of the service are managed
• How satisfied tenants are with the service

To carry out the review, we:

• Received a briefing from Progress Housing Group colleagues telling us how the out-of-hours service is delivered
• Looked at the information available on the website
• Looked at information relating to the service, including call data, training resources, and policies
• Looked at tenant satisfaction information

We found that the following areas were working well:

• It is easy to contact the out-of-hours service
• Calls are answered promptly, with an average wait time of under two minutes
• Tenants are clearly advised that the service is for emergencies only
• Tenants are clearly advised about the recharge policy and when this would be used
• When a repair is ordered, tenants are advised it can be up to 24 hours before the repair is carried out

We also made six recommendations on how the service could be improved to provide a better experience for tenants.

Since completing the review, three recommendations have been implemented, with three being progressed.

The review has seen an improvement in the information provided on the website, including information about what an emergency repair is Emergency repairs | Progress Housing Group (progressgroup.org.uk)

It also led to a change in process to make sure tenants receive a phonecall when someone is on their way to carry out the repair.

Neil, Service Delivery Manager, told us how the service has benefitted from the tenants’ review:

“It’s been really useful to work with our tenants to help us understand what is important to them, so that we can improve in the right areas that have the biggest impact. It has also been helpful to have positive tenant feedback, so that we can make sure we maintain those levels.”

Earlier this year our Aids and Adaptation team got together with our Tenants’ Voice – Improving Services group to have a look at what the service is, what it provides to tenants and the benefit this brings.

The service covers a massive area covering about 180 different local authority areas.  It provides services to tenants living in RWP, general needs and independent living homes.

Tenants heard that there are 2 different categories of aids and adaptations available, minor – like fitting a grab rail and major – like fitting a wet room with level access shower.

Whilst reviewing the service, tenants looked at:

• Information available to Progress Housing Group colleagues
• Policy and procedure guides
• Information sent to tenants
• Satisfaction information

They found that Progress Housing Group relies on external groups when carrying out major aids and adaptations.  This involves an assessment by occupational therapists to make recommendations on the work needed.

Following their review tenants made 9 recommendations on how  the service could be improved from a tenants perspective.  The recommendations included:

• Look at letters to make sure timescales are clear for tenants.
• Introduce a second satisfaction survey after 6 months to find out the benefits for the tenant.
• Find out how satisfied tenants are with communication of the process.
• Look at information provided to tenants to make sure it is clear how to make the first step in asking for an aid or adaptation.

Carly Mustoe, Head of Housing Operations at RWP, said: "Supporting our tenants through tailored aid and adaptations is not just about accessibility, but enabling independence. Having our customers and tenants involved in improving our processes helps us better understand how to best deliver our services."

Any tenant can join the Tenants’ Voice – Improving Services group. We will provide support and training for anyone interested.  

We also provide support from an independent mentor, Jayne Boote. She helps us by providing guidance and support when carrying out reviews and making sure:

• The right questions are asked
• The right information is provided 
• Recommendations will have a positive impact on tenants and the service. 
  
  

'Progress Housing Group has always been strongly committed to providing independent support for tenants undertaking scrutiny. The benefit of this is that tenants can choose the scrutiny topics, scope out reviews, select scrutiny methods, and produce a report of their findings. The Board welcomes this approach as it provides valuable insight from tenants on how Progress is performing, particularly about tenant services.'

Jayne Boote, Independent Mentor

Over the next year, we will be carrying out a scrutiny review of two areas: the planned maintenance service and tenant communication.

If you would like to find out more about the work of the Tenants’ Voice – Improving Services group, including how you can get involved or suggest a service for a scrutiny review, contact Diane from the Customer Voice Team at community@progressgroup.org.uk