Our ever popular tenant panels conference is back for its fifth year!
Tenant panels get engaged in scrutiny, complaints, mystery shopping and inspection and consultative groups, and there have been many recent reports on the best methods of involving customers. During the conference, we will examine the content of these reports and what they mean for you.
We will also consider the emerging role of tenant researchers, social media and satisfaction surveys to gauge opinion from those who do not wish to attend meetings.
There will also be discussion of the measurement of success in involvement and how we can demonstrate this
We have workshops planned and delivered by customers and staff on their role in scrutiny panels, designated complaint panels, and all tenant meetings on antisocial behaviour, major works programmes and many more. We will also be exploring how scrutiny has supported landlords to reinvent themselves on social media and branding.
| 0930 | Registration, refreshments, networking and exhibition viewing |
| 1000 | Joint Chair’s introduction and welcome
Dave Pickard, Group Director of Operations, Thirteen Group Introduction to the conference and the issues under discussion. |
| 1010 | An investment, not a cost: The business benefits of tenant involvement
Nic Bliss, Author of report on behalf of the National Tenant Organisations Nic will explain how good landlords understand that listening to tenants is not just the right thing to do. It is also good for business. Nic will talk the audience through the five case studies and the costs benefits of customer involvement and what worked for the five case study organisations. Nic will also explain the follow on project to design an investment and involvement statement, heard by board annually and progress on what this might look like. |
| 1030 | Changing places: How can we make customer involvement relevant?
Jemma Mouland, Head of Research, Family Mosaic HA Family Mosaic has taken a radical review of involvement. Jemma will explain their approach to involvement to put residents at the centre of their business through investing in local neighbourhood empowerment, resident involvement in what matters most to residents, use of big data, social media, customer researchers. |
| 1050 | Measuring involvement and getting heard by Boards and senior managers
Yvonne Davies, Managing Director, Scrutiny and Empowerment Partners Limited Yvonne has been working with RING NW and members of Scrutiny.Net to review the different method of involving customers and why these have more impact in some organisations than others. Yvonne will explain what the project has learnt so far on how the profile of customers, leadership from the Board and senior staff and the tenant groups themselves can impact on the value placed on involvement and meaningful measured outcomes for customers. |
| 1110 | Question time
Nic, John and Yvonne will take questions from the audience, managed by the joint chairs. |
| 1135 | Workshops: Session 1
Workshop numbers 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 |
| 1235 | Lunch, networking, and exhibition viewing |
| 1335 | Workshops: Session 2
Workshop numbers 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12 |
| 1435 | Refreshments |
| 1455 | Workshops: Session 3
Workshop numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 11, 12 |
| 1555 | Digital story-telling, live internet broadcasting and social media: How this can aid communication in communities and support customer engagement
John Popham, Chief Executive of Citizens Interactive Broadcasting John is number two on the top 50 digital power players in UK housing. He loves the internet and all types of new technologies. He will explain in a simple way and entice and enthuse you to tell your stories through websites, you tube channels and event reporting John will be picking up your issues and problems where the use of social media might help customer groups to use these techniques in scrutiny, tenant inspection, reality checking, mystery shopping, complaints, neighbourhood panels, consultative groups and other panels. |
| 1615 | Question time for John |
| 1620 | Joint Chair’s closing remarks
Highlight of key issues arising and final remarks. |
| 1630 | Close of conference |
Workshop choices
| Workshop 1 | Measuring community investment and making more of satisfaction data – HACT Frances Harkin and Mary-Kathryn Rallings, Housing Association Charitable Trust (HACT) HACT have been supported social housing providers to identify social value and social impact. Housing providers typically spend 5-10% of their budgets on a wide range of community investment opportunities designed to improve life chances and opportunities for customers. HACT are seeking to measure the impact of landlords supporting customers into employment and training; tenancy sustainment; health and wellbeing; digital inclusion; financial inclusion and the local environment. HACT are also running a project to improve and enhance our use of social housing benchmarking data. They are keen to understand how we can make better use of like for like measurement and improve our analysis of the data we collect. In particular, they are keen to establish the drivers and consequences of actions and the causes of satisfaction. HACT will share progress on both of these projects and gather your views on any findings to date. |
| Workshop 2 | Incommunities Scrutiny Panel – A Systems Thinking approach to Scrutiny and our latest work on repairs Kelly Hargreaves, Customer Insight and Involvement Officer and Customer Inspector Val Bryan, at Incommunities Incommunities Scrutiny panel are commissioned by their Local Management Trusts to complete scrutiny exercises of various service areas. Their processes are well embedded, leading to reporting back to the Local Management Trusts, Executive Management Team and a formal route to reporting at Board Level. Incommunities have adopted a systems thinking approach to their business by analysing and reviewing the demand for services by customers through various access points and understanding this as part of their scrutiny. Incommunities will link their presentation to show how they approach their scrutiny process using systems thinking techniques, looking at their scrutiny of repairs. |
| Workshop 3 | “So what“ – weeks with Customers Jacque Holmes and a Customer from City West Homes City West have developed customer service weeks, with nine meetings a year, looking at performance over five days with customers and managers. Find out how City West works with customers in those 5 days to:
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| Workshop 4 | East Durham Homes Scrutiny Panel: Scrutinising Communications and Marketing
Steven Dawson, Customer Involvement Officer and Joan Zettle, Scrutiny Panel Coordinator The Scrutiny Panel were commissioned to review communications, including use of social media, the website and other ways on communicating with tenants. The Panel will explain:
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| Workshop 5 | Independent Tenant Solutions: Our Designated Complaints Panel (DCP) and our new approach to advocating for customers
Monica Wilson and James Gillard, Customers of Pendleton Together and members of the DCP Independent Tenant Solutions were early starters to set up their joint designated complaints panel in 2012. Since that time, they have heard many complaints and have lots of wisdom to share. The Panel was set up by tenants from Salix Homes; New Charter, Southway Housing, City West Homes and Together Pendleton. Their aim is to resolve the complaint with the landlord when the internal compliant procedure is exhausted. They meet with the customer and make recommendations for dispute resolution. Their aim was always to develop the work of the Panel to offer additional advocacy services when they were confident to do so. In 2014, they were trained on advocacy for compliant panels. The Panel will share:
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| Workshop 6 | Thirteen Scrutiny Panel: “Promoting a positive image of social housing”
Jonathan Cannon, Customer Involvement Co-ordinator and Melvyn Rhodes, Coordinator for the Scrutiny Panel Changing market conditions and increased competition from the private rented sector has led to reduced demand for social housing properties and increasing voids. Thirteen Scrutiny panel were commissioned for customer ideas on how they could improve the image and marketing of the social housing stock to attract new customers The Panel will explain how the 4 HAs group scrutiny:
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| Workshop 7 | Consulting and involving all customers: The Voice – Leeds and Yorkshire HA
Norman Davidson, Customer Experience Manager and a LYHA customer LYHA are a small HA based in Leeds with homes in Leeds and Whitby. They employ a Customer Experience Manager to ensure a customer focused culture. He leads on customer communications, customer engagement & empowerment, customer access and experience, customer insight, continuous improvement and scrutiny. In February 2015 the Voice was formed to gather information from any customer who is prepared to attend a meeting – the invitations to all meetings are for all customers and transport is provided. LYHA will explain:
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| Workshop 8 | Insight (Great Places HA) Scrutiny Panel – Scrutiny of ASB
Tracey Gregory, Customer Involvement Co-ordinator and Scrutiny Panel member at Great Places Housing Association The Panel reviewed their journey into scrutiny and their first scrutiny of complaints, delivered in record time, including the training! In this workshop the Customer Scrutiny Panel (Insight) will discuss their approach to understanding scrutiny and entering scrutiny for the first time to reviews of Complaint Management including:
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| Workshop 9 | Housing, Social and Welfare Policies – what’s changed and how can customers get involved and influence?
Yvonne Davies, Scrutiny and Empowerment partners Limited Much has changed in the world of housing, including:
………………… to name but a few! So strap in and get involved in a debate. In this workshop, we discuss how these changes impact on communities and landlords. We will suggest a role for customers and involvement teams to get involved in influencing and supporting changes made by landlords as a result of new policies. |
| Workshop 10 | Bernicia Homes: Customer Complaint Panel Steve Burke, Customer Involvement Manager and a Customer from the Compliant Panel Bernicia has worked with customers over the 2 years to increase their accountability to customers on complaints. Their approach has been one of enabling customers to hold Bernicia to account for lessons learnt from complaints and spot checking decisions made on formal complaints by officers, making suggestions for improvement. The Panel will share:
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| Workshop 11 | How we use reality testing to enhance our services and our scrutiny
Dean Slavin, Involvement Manager Officer and a customer volunteer from Wythenshawe Community Housing Group Customer service testing is widely used by housing providers and other companies to check the consistency of services being provided to their customers. Customer volunteers contact WCHG anonymously with requests for information, questions about services, etc, to check services are being delivered in line with company policies and procedures. The testers undertake telephone surveys and email enquiries, as well as face-to-face visits and observation at WCHG outlets. The testers will explain:
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| Workshop 12 | Ellesmere Port and Neston Housing (EPN) Scrutiny Panel – Scrutinising Major Works Programmes
Karen Traynor, Senior Involvement Organiser, Plus Dane Group and Bob Lucas Chair of the Scrutiny Panel The Panel considered the customer service elements of the capital works programme, including:
The Panel will explain:
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