Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Contents
1. Background
2
2. Aims and Objectives
3
3. Structure
4
4. Strategy Development and Priorities
11
5. The Future
14
6. Equality and Diversity
15
7. Dealing with Complaints
16
Glossary and documents available upon request
19
Executive summary
This strategy sets out Poole Housing Partnership‟s
three-year plan for resident involvement. It details:
The aims and objectives of resident involvement
How we developed this strategy
The current structure of resident involvement
An action plan for the next two years
Our hope is that there are enough ways to become
actively involved to suit all residents and that the result
is that more and more residents become involved in the
way we deliver our services.
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
1. Background
In 2004 Poole Housing Partnership was established as an Arms Length
Management Organisation (ALMO), with Residents making up one third of the
fifteen-strong Board of Directors.
New offices at Beech House in 2005 provided the opportunity to establish a
Residents‟ Resource Centre to give all residents facilities for meetings,
training, use of computers and newsletter production.
Since 2004 the emphasis for resident involvement has changed focus from
“what PHP needed from residents” to “what residents need from PHP”. This
meant looking beyond the formal process and government requirements to
greater choice, more incentives, regular training, increased flexibility and a
more localised approach. The principle is to have a wide range of options so
that there will be an option to suit all residents. Resident involvement has
increasingly become an integral part of the job for every member of our staff,
across the whole range of services provided.
In updating this strategy, we have looked at best practice from other
organisations, taken into account the Regulatory Framework for Social
Housing 2012 and the Localism Act 2011 and consulted residents using the
Housing Strategy Panel and the Board.
The Localism Act 2011
The Act reforms the way that social housing is regulated and over rides the
Housing and Regeneration Act 2008. The Act provides social tenants with
stronger tools to hold their landlords to account. Landlords will be expected to
support tenant panels – or similar bodies - in order to give tenants the
opportunity to carefully examine the service being offered. The Act also
abolishes the Tenants Services Authority and transfers its remaining functions
to the Homes and Community Agency.
The new Regulatory Framework 2012
This Framework implements the Localism Act. It details specific standards all
social housing landlords must achieve, it is up to tenants, boards and
councillors to ensure that service delivery is meeting these standards. The
standards are broken down into 2 categories:
1. Standards relating to economic matters or
2. Standards relating to consumer matters
Economic standards only apply to private housing landlords, consumer
standards however apply to all social housing providers, including PHP,
The consumer standards are:
1. Tenant involvement and empowerment standard
2. Home Standard
3. Tenancy Standard
4. Neighbourhood and Community standard
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
The Tenant involvement and empowerment standard applies directly to this
strategy and requires PHP to achieve required outcomes. The main areas
covered here are:
- Customer service, choice and complaints
- Involvement and empowerment
- Understanding and responding to the diverse needs of tenants
The full document can be found here:
http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/ourwork/regulatory-framework
This Strategy will be reviewed and amended periodically.
This strategy sets out the way that Poole Housing Partnership commits to
engage, involve and consult residents about services and communities.
For the purposes of this strategy, tenants and leaseholders of Poole Housing
Partnership will be referred to collectively as “residents”.
The Resident Involvement Strategy:
Aims to be an accessible document for involved and interested
residents and staff
Gives the principles of involvement
Details the process of consultation leading to the Strategy
Describes the „menu‟ of involvement
Is written according to standards set out by the Government and
national best practice, but mainly from consultation with residents
across Poole
Details the service standards for resident involvement and the core
standards of our commitment to residents
Describes how residents can make a comment or complaint about the
resident involvement services
A full review of this strategy will be carried out within 2 years (2015)
Strategy summary:
Aims to be a simple-to-follow document, summarising the key points of
this strategy
Describes all of the ways residents can be actively involved with
shaping the services that PHP deliver
Details the key service standards residents can expect
Will be available both as a hard copy and online
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
2. Aims and Objectives
The aims of resident involvement are:
To continuously empower residents to shape the services they receive,
by consulting to provide a flexible range of ways to deliver effective
resident involvement
To embed resident involvement as part of the culture of Poole Housing
Partnership
To ensure high satisfaction for residents within the involvement
structure
To support the wider objective of developing strong communities
To ensure all sections of the community have their voice heard,
especially under-represented groups such as youth
To provide all residents with various training opportunities throughout
the year, both within PHP and using the multi agency group TRUST
To ensure that all staff members are aware of the importance of
resident involvement, and the impact it has on their role.
The objectives of resident involvement over the next two years will be:
To ensure that residents are involved in an appropriate way such as in:
o Service Contract letting
o Neighbourhood improvements
o Policy and procedure development
o Sustainable community development
o Changes to the way services are provided or financed
o Service and performance monitoring
To consult upon any significant change in the way that housing
management service is delivered
To increase the number of residents who wish to engage with us and
at a level and in a way that suits them
To involve residents to reflect the diversity and geography of Poole
Housing Partnership‟s communities and housing stock, including hardto-reach groups such as young people.
To continuously review and improve the opportunities and scope of
resident led decision making
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
To review and meet training needs for both residents and staff to
enable effective resident involvement
To make all staff responsible for promoting and encouraging resident
involvement in a formal context, through job descriptions, one-to-ones
and Employee Development Interviews
To work closely with the Borough of Poole and other local partners in
developing strong communities by empowering local people to have a
greater voice and influence over decision making, and promoting the
opportunities for residents to shape and support those communities
3. Structure
The structure of resident involvement at Poole Housing Partnership is
designed:
To provide information
To consult with residents
To listen to residents views
To actively encourage involvement in decision making
To enable residents to influence housing policy and strategy
To ensure no resident is excluded because of discrimination
The resident involvement structure permeates the whole of Poole Housing
Partnership, up to and including the Board of Directors, where five residents
make up a third of the Board. There is a spectrum of involvement, from the
more formal Board and Housing Strategy Policy Panel, down to the very
informal People‟s Panel, a questionnaire-based panel which does not require
residents to even leave home.
This spectrum is designed to allow residents to get involved at a level that
suits them, and allows for flexibility. Some residents progress from being
Local Community Representatives to sitting on the Housing Strategy Panel,
while others are happy to attend one off focus groups.
The structure was designed in consultation with residents to ensure a
representative balance between tenants, leaseholders and special interest
groups in Poole Housing Partnership managed housing stock. The three
strands of the structure lead into the Housing Strategy Panel, ensuring that
both significant special interest (leaseholders and sheltered residents) groups
are able to be involved in ways that take into account their particular
circumstances and are represented on the top resident panel. All three groups
are able to represent their communities as Local Community Representatives.
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
In future new additions to the structure will be designed to allow residents who
are not represented currently, particularly children and young people, to
become involved with PHP.
Type
Form
Informing
At Home
Magazine
Website
Consulting
Annual
Satisfaction
Survey
People’s Panel
Focus/steering
groups
Description
Resident magazine providing information
on current events at Poole Housing
Partnership and publicises services
Letters page and competitions for
residents
Resident Editorial group provides
feedback and input on all issues
At Home can be provided in a range of
different formats, including different
languages, Braille, large print, audio or
electronic
Collects all PHP information together
Dates and events advertised
Residents can carry out business with
PHP through the website through forms,
payment, etc.
Annual survey with questions discussed
with resident focus groups beforehand
Easy opportunity for all residents to be
involved at least once throughout the year
Collects information about overall resident
satisfaction with services
Results improve services and ensure that
they are meeting needs of all residents
Quarterly survey conducted by post,
phone or email
Primarily for those with very little time
Topics cover all service areas
Focus or steering groups are held as and
when required to discuss issues relating to
the housing service such as the
introduction of new car parking schemes
Database of interested residents is used
to determine invitees
Focus groups are an ideal opportunity for
residents to attend an occasional
discussion
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Resident
Scrutiny Panel
Neighborhood
Walkabouts
Involving
Community
Roadshows
Neighbourhood
Improvements
on
Communities
and Estates
(NICE)
Training
Residents check our services by reviewing
each service area and recommending any
improvements
Any resident can be a member, subject to
training
Tours an estate and brings Local
Community Representatives, , staff, local
agencies and interested residents
together to improve the estate and tackle
any issues
Conducted by the local housing officer
and Estate Services Manager
Aim is to improve the environment, reduce
crime and design out anti-social
behaviour, and to put residents in control
of their own estates
Localised fundays for residents in a
specific community
Providing an opportunity to engage with
PHP officers
Offer residents information on services
offered
Provide fun activities for families free of
charge
Allows residents to bid for up to a £3000
grant to improve their estate
Encourages residents to work together in
their community and provides tangible
benefits for being involved
Examples include garden seating and
garden improvements, lighting, security
works and art
Various training sessions provided,
ranging from short I.T. taster sessions to
full training and personal development
courses.
They develop residents‟ abilities to be
effectively involved and are an incentive to
further involvement
Can also help people to find work and new
careers
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Working
Groups
Engaging
Local
Community
Representatives
(LCR)
Sheltered
Housing
Resident
Associations
and Social
Clubs
Resident
Associations in
general needs
housing
Annual
Leaseholder
Customer
Service Panel
Sheltered
Housing Forum
Regular groups consulting on a range of
issues
Membership open to any resident and is
not restricted to representatives
Members give feedback on any proposal
in a specific area of activity, help draft
policies and proposals and monitor
relevant service delivery
Examples: Communications, , Disability,
Reinvestment, Service Improvement
Represents their street, block or
neighbourhood
Work to improve the quality of life for
people in their community through liaison
with staff and other agencies
Receive regular training opportunities to
assist them in their role
Many Sheltered Housing communities
have a Resident Association or social
committee that represents all residents in
that area
Run democratically in accordance with
aims set down in their constitution
Provide a way for residents to be involved
in their community
Extend the use of sheltered common
rooms for the wider communities including
lunch clubs and intergenerational projects
such as gardening
Resident Associations represent all
residents in a defined area
Run democratically in accordance with
aims set down in their constitution
Provide way for residents to be involved in
their community, and committee can
represent them to PHP
Meets with our Leasehold Services Officer
to discuss issues relating to leaseholders
and leasehold management, including
service charges, maintenance and
investment
Made up of all the Sheltered Housing
Local Community Representatives and the
Housing Locality Managers
Discusses housing needs of older people,
issues that are common to all Sheltered
Schemes and how to improve
environment and communities in sheltered
housing
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Housing
Strategy Panel
The Board of
Directors
Made up of elected tenants and
leaseholders from the Sheltered Housing
Forum, , the and special interest groups
(such as Focus on Disability Working
Group)
Reports directly to the Board.
Monitors work and performance of PHP
and agrees strategy, direction and
standards of service
Supported by Councillors, Board Members
and staff, but residents alone make
decisions
Consists of 15 members; four Tenant
representatives, one Leaseholder
representative, five Councillors and five
Independent members
Responsible for long-term strategic
direction of PHP and ensuring
management team turns these strategies
into reality
Has a dedicated Resident Involvement
sub-committee to make decisions and
recommendations about engaging
residents
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
4. Strategy Development
Consultation and engagement with residents is the key focus of this strategy,
and accordingly we have based the direction of our resident involvement upon
the priorities our residents put forward.
Resident Involvement Service Standards
Poole Housing Partnership promise to deliver the following to you:
Information
We commit to:
Ensure you receive at least 3 At Home magazines per year
Update the PHP website on at least a fortnightly basis
Share information with residents through a variety of mediums; letter,
newsletter, phone, text, email, website, in person and in communal
areas
Publicise the dates and venues of open meetings three months in
advance
Consultation
We commit to:
Allow residents to be effectively involved at a time and in a way that
suits them
Allow residents to be involved in issues that interest them
Consult our residents on:
o Service Contract letting
o Neighbourhood improvements
o Policy and procedure development
o Sustainable community development
o Changes to the way services are provided or financed
o Scrutinising service and performance monitoring
Groups and meetings will have clear objectives and mandates
Outcomes of consultation will be reported to residents, including any
implemented changes, within two weeks of the outcome being known
Engagement
We commit to:
Provide regular training for interested residents
Provide expenses to ensure involved residents are not out-of-pocket,
including travel, carer, stationary and communication costs
Include interested residents from all backgrounds, including traditionally
“hard-to-reach” groups, in strengthening the community
Be proactive and innovative in going into local areas to work with the
community and other agencies
Good service
We commit to:
Benchmark our service performance against other organisations
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Review Resident Involvement Strategy, menu of involvement and
service standards annually
Standards for Areas of Involvement
Resident Involvement is expected and welcomed by PHP in all possible areas
of service delivery, service improvement and community engagement. This
includes the following areas, but we are always finding more:
Developing the council‟s housing policy and strategy
Drawing up and appraising options for housing investment and
improvements
Developing and taking forward the chosen option for investment
Drawing up the council‟s capital and renovation programmes
Developing and implementing regeneration and improvement
programmes
Budgets, finance, rent-setting
Allocation and lettings policies and procedures
Anti-social behaviour policies and procedures
Management of housing services
Policies and procedures for repairs, maintenance, rent collection and
rent arrears, voids
Tenancy management and sustainability issues, tenancy agreements
and conditions
Housing benefits, debt advice and debt recovery procedures
Leaseholder issues and charges
Sheltered housing services
PHP service and performance strategies; and arrangements for
monitoring and reviewing PHP performance, addressing shortcomings
and remedial action
Setting, monitoring and reviewing services, performance standards and
targets for housing management and neighbourhood services
Proposed remedial action if performance on services falls short
Proposals to contract housing services to other providers including
through partnering contracts
Monitoring grounds maintenance and cleaning standards
Neighbourhood issues which affect tenants‟ homes or the management
of the housing service
Equality policies, including race equality policies and policies on racial
harassment
Customer care standards
Environmental works and estate improvements
Arrangements for providing information, for tenant consultation and
involvement including handling complaints and remedial action
Sustainability planning and projects
Developing strong, safe and pleasant neighborhoods
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Standards for Resources for Resident Involvement
PHP knows that promises about involvement need to be backed up with the
resources to deliver an excellent involvement service. Therefore we have set
out the resources we are committing to support and develop resident
involvement.
Staff
There will always be a Resident Involvement Coordinator to run the service,
supported by their line manager as strategic lead. All PHP staff will be aware
of and will carry out their responsibilities to involve residents in improving all
aspects of PHP services. All new members of staff will meet the resident
involvement coordinator for an induction into the importance of resident
involvement and PHP‟s structure. Training for the customer services team
was held in 2013 and very well attended.
Budget
A budget of at least £40,000 per annum will be provided through which the
Resident Involvement objectives will be resourced, including (but not limited
to):
Start-up grants for recognised residents‟ groups
Support for resident projects
Provision of a Resident Resource Centre with word-processing,
internet, printing, photocopying and meeting facilities
At least 3 At Home magazines per year
Advice and support, both directly and through membership of groups
like the Tenant Participation Advisory Service (TPAS)
Tailored training for representatives, resident groups and individual
residents, including training jointly with staff
Payment of resident expenses for being involved so that no resident is
out-of-pocket, according to the expenses policy (including stationary,
communication, travel and carer costs)
Making involvement accessible to all, through hire of accessible rooms,
provision of translation facilities, etc.
Innovative approaches to encourage residents to get involved
Standards for meetings
We recognise that although meetings are not the only form of involvement,
many residents find them the easiest way of engaging with PHP and making
informed decisions. To make sure these meeting are effective, we guarantee
that meetings will:
Have clear objectives and a mandate
Have a clear action plan to deal with matters arising
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Have measures for reporting back the outcome, including feedback, to
residents
Be publicised effectively and in good time
Be held at suitable times and in accessible places, to maximise
attendance
Be properly chaired, and conducted in a fair and democratic way so
that everyone gets a chance to have their say and is kept informed.
Standards for information
Information is the first rung on the ladder of involvement, and is often as far as
many residents want to go in participation. Therefore the timely provision of
good quality, accurate and appropriate information is vital in delivering
excellent involvement. PHP makes the following commitments in this respect.
PHP information will be:
Accessible (i.e. in plain language and be available in large print, Braille,
cassette, translation etc.)
Expressed clearly, avoiding jargon and racist, sexist or other biased
language
Of good quality, timely and tailored to tenants‟ needs.
PHP will distribute, through a wide range of formats, information including (but
not limited to) the following:
Housing strategies, policies and priorities
Housing investment options and plans
Arrangements and requirements for delegating housing management,
including contracting out of services
Arrangements for developing and implementing value for money,
including monitoring and reviewing performance and setting service
standards and targets
Housing management and other relevant local services
Present future capital works affecting tenants, their homes and their
area
PHP‟s race equality and racial harassment policies
How tenants can get involved in housing management and decisionmaking and what this will mean for them, including benefits for both
tenants and PHP
Support available to help residents get involved
Standards for Residents’ Groups and Recognition
Residents can get involved individually or collectively. Where a group of
residents acts on behalf of other residents, it is important that there is a
standard to which they should adhere to, in order that relationships between
residents, the residents‟ group and PHP should remain productive. To that
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
end, we set a standard for PHP‟s recognition of resident groups. The standard
is designed to be a minimal burden on residents and exists for their benefit.
Where residents‟ groups have a role in decision-making, they shall be able to
show that they are democratic, accountable and have all of the following:
A written constitution
Equal opportunities policies
Regular elections
Open financial records (and annual accounts if appropriate)
Regular meetings, including an annual general meeting that a minimum
necessary number of residents attend before the meeting can take
decisions and where minutes are taken
A level of active membership determined by PHP and residents
Procedures to make sure that information on the group is made widely
available to residents and all residents are encouraged to become
more active
Membership clearly open to all residents
Regular newsletters or other written communications with members
Standards for Monitoring Performance
Commitments need to be backed up by evidence, and these standards are no
exception. Residents and PHP will work together to monitor that the standards
are adhered to.
We will:
Assess the results and impact of involvement according to these core
standards
Review policies, practice and performance at regular intervals
Set clear service standards and targets for resident consultation and
involvement
Monitor the effectiveness of the local community representative role
through annual 121‟s and regular meetings with their housing
officer/sheltered housing officer
If service standards and targets are not met, investigate and find
remedies
Look at best practice and evaluate different approaches to resident
involvement, in order to remain effective and efficient
Monitor resident representatives and groups to make sure they
continue to carry out their roles effectively
Monitor equality of opportunity and levels of involvement by all groups,
including ethnic minorities
Assess performance against what other housing organisations are
achieving (benchmarking)
Annually set targets for, and measure, resident satisfaction with
opportunities to participate, housing services (including value for
money) and their local area
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
5. The Future
The changing face of social housing in general and resident involvement in
particular makes predicting policy in coming years challenging, but we are
committed to continuously seeking out good practice and applying it to the
situation in Poole wherever possible.
Recent developments in resident involvement have led to a strong community
engagement and development focus, with the emphasis firmly on
communities being sustainable. We want to consult with residents and
empower them to influence decisions, but also to work with them in their
communities. This would involve working with all residents in a community,
including those renting privately and owner-occupiers
We are looking to involve young people in a lot of different ways, meeting their
needs and objectives for involvement rather than forcing them into channels
more suited to our needs. Steps have already taken to tap into existing work
from other organisations, and the next stage is to provide youth specific routes
into involvement.
6. Equality and Diversity
The strategy conforms to the Council‟s and Poole Housing Partnership‟s
equality statements and policy.
Poole Housing Partnership is committed to providing information and services,
equally and without discrimination, to meet the needs of all sections of the
community who are housed by the Borough of Poole, living near properties
managed by Poole Housing Partnership or seeking access to information on
housing services in the Borough of Poole.
Poole Housing Partnership also understands and respects the broad range of
qualities which characterise its residents which include race, religion,
nationality, ethnic background, colour disability, gender, sexuality, age,
literacy, vulnerability and income level.
The Resident Involvement Strategy recognises the differing needs of our
residents; in particular those from special interest groups such as those living
in Sheltered Housing or difficult to reach groups such as parents with young
children.
To help overcome barriers to effective participation Poole Housing Partnership
promises to:
Collect resident data to accurately record and report the demography
of our residents
Review our activities and events to ensure a broad representation of
residents are able to participate if they wish
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Provide a range of options for being involved to encourage special
interest groups (such as leaseholders or sheltered residents) or difficult
to reach groups to participate
Offer equalities and diversity training as part of the training program for
Local Community Representatives and interested residents
Monitor equal opportunities in our Resident Involvement Structure
7. Comments & Complaints
If you feel that this Strategy fails to meet the standards we set for ourselves, in
format, clarity or consistency of information, or if you believe Poole Housing
Partnership has failed to fulfill our commitments in this Strategy, please
contact the Resident Involvement Coordinator on 01202 264422, or in writing
to Resident Involvement Team, Freepost PHP, or by email to
[email protected]
This strategy will be continuously reviewed, with new action plans formed for
each year. All resident comments will be taken into account in this process.
If you feel this has not solved the problem, please contact the Chair of the
Housing Strategy Panel who will take your issue to a meeting of the Panel (to
which you will be invited) for discussion.
If you are dissatisfied with the conclusions reached by the Panel, please
continue with your complaint by using the Poole Housing Partnership
complaints procedure, detailed below.
Comments & Complaints about Resident Involvement Services
We have a comprehensive and objective complaints procedure to deal with
instances where a resident feels that they have not received the high quality
services they have a right to expect.
If you think that we have failed to meet the resident involvement service
standards or did not follow the correct policy or procedure as regards resident
involvement, please follow our official complaints procedure.
If you require a copy of this leaflet, please contact the Complaints Officer at
Beech House on 01202 264400 and we will send you one. Alternatively you
can collect one from our reception at Beech House or download it from our
website, www.yourphp.org.uk
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Mediation
We recognise that sometimes a difference of opinion or judgement will arise
between residents, residents groups and/or PHP that are not necessarily
appropriate for resolution through the official complaints procedure.
In these cases we would recommend that mediation be used. Mediation will
identify common ground between parties and work towards an outcome that
all parties can accept. Independent mediators will be used.
Independent Advice
If you would like independent advice on resident involvement, it can be
provided by the Tenant Participation Advisory Service (TPAS) or the Tenants
and Residents Organisation of England (TAROE). The contact details for
these organisations are given at the end of this document.
Contacts
Poole Housing Partnership
Resident Involvement Team
Poole Housing Partnership
28-30 Wimborne Road
Poole
BH15 2BU
Tel: 01202 264422
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.yourphp.org.uk
The Borough of Poole
Civic Centre
Tel: 01202 633430
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.poole.gov.uk
Tenant Participation Advisory Service (TPAS)
Free advice for tenants of organisations with membership (currently, PHP are
members of TPAS).
TPAS Ltd
Suite 4b Trafford Plaza,
73 Seymour Grove,
Manchester
M16 0LD
Tel: 0161 868 3500
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.tpas.org.uk
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Tenant and Residents Organisation of England (TAROE)
TAROE, the Tenants‟ and Residents‟ Organisations of England, is an
accountable, national organisation which unites tenants‟ and residents‟ groups
from the regulated housing sector across England
TAROE
The Old Police Station
Mersey Road
Runcorn
WA7 1DF
Tel: 01928 798120
[email protected]
Website: www.taroe.org
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Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Glossary
Academy
Poole Housing Partnership‟s database
BME
Black and Minority Ethnic
BoP
Borough of Poole
DIT
Disability Information Team
HA
Housing Association
HSP
Housing Strategy Panel
LCR
Local Community Representative
NICE
Neighbourhood Improvements in Communities and
Estates
PHP
Poole Housing Partnership
PI
Performance Indicator
RIC
Resident Involvement Coordinator
RSL
Registered Social Landlord
SHF
Sheltered Housing Forum
SMART
Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timebased
Documents available upon request
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Local Community Representative induction booklet
Local Community Representative code of conduct
Local Community Representative expense policy
Glossy summary of Resident Involvement Strategy 2012-2015
Nomination and election process for Local Community Representatives
Resident Training schedule for 2012-13 and 2013-14 (when developed)
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