The principles and practice of customer involvement in scrutiny

Learning together partnership14th September 2011

Yvonne Davies Scrutiny and Empowerment Partners

The Principles• Review of Housing Regulation - October 2011• CLG consultation on draft directions to TSA July 2011• TSA closes to become part of the Homes & Communities Agency (HCA) in

2012• The Localism Bill & new tenant standards

– Standards, annual report and local offers – Tenant panels to help landlords self regulate– Tenant role in complaints resolution– Tenant Cashback – Right to manage

The Practice• What are the rules for scrutiny?• What structure should I choose?• Recruitment• Building Skills• Communication• Support• Relationship Management• The process• Value for money

The Principles

What the Government says…• “Landlords are accountable to their tenants, not to the regulator. Tenants must

therefore have the information and opportunities they need to hold their landlords to account and to shape service delivery”

• “The review’s recommendations will result in the system becoming more co-regulatory – with a clearer role for tenants in scrutinising performance… while the regulator’s attention will be focussed on serious failures”

DCLG Review of Social Housing Regulation

The government view on localism

“Today is the start of a deep and serious reform agenda to take power away from politicians and give it to people.“

David Cameron“We need to give people the platform to get things done ….. a system which properly puts tenants and their representatives firmly in the driving seat.”

Grant Shapps

Tenant Scrutiny Panels• Help drift to local challenge and scrutiny• New involvement standard• Tenants given opportunity to form Panels to hold

landlords to account and to scrutinise service delivery

• Tenants get timely & useful information on performance which they agree with tenants

• Tenant make recommendations about improvements

Tenant scrutiny Panels (2)

• Landlords to welcome this challenge via a tenant panel (or equivalent group)

• Clear regulatory obligation on landlords to provide timely, useful performance information to tenants in order to support effective scrutiny

• Annual report to tenants will be a regulatory obligation

Complaints & Tenant Panels

• Housing Association Ombudsman will deal with all complaints, including those which used to go to the Local Govt Ombudsman from April 2013

• Tenants panels to be recognised by the Housing Ombudsman Service (HoS) as a designated person -if they wish to register as referral body for complaints

• Criteria being worked on by HoS• Good practice guidance being worked on by HoS and then will

be disseminated

Tenant Cashback• Give tenants opportunities to be involved in the undertake or

commission routine repairs themselves, as agreed with the landlord

• Tenants to be given a chance to share in the financial savings• Publication of information on repairs budgets will help

tenants judge whether the schemes are sufficiently ambitious• Local circumstances of stock age and condition and type

recognised• Tenants to gain practical and transferrable skills• Outcomes to be published in annual reports

Right to Manage

• Tenants to have further opportunities to take responsibility for the management of their homes

• Landlords should support tenants in that right• Assume that standard will be updated in April 2012 before

the pilots have concluded their work

No more detail on this time, but assume this means you might need to promote the RTM more than you currently do

What else?

• Tenant standards remain and local offers• Consumer protection to replace consumer protection and TSA

will only intervene if Serious Detriment• Economic Regulation – governance and finance – beefed up• CLG final direction to TSA in October 2011• TSA consultation on Serious Detriment in November 2011• TSA consultation on revised standards on current standards

get updated in November 2011 and go out to consultation• New standards finalised March and regulated from April 2012• Annual reports remain & regulatory obligation to send these

to tenants

The Practice

What are the rules for scrutiny?The only ‘rule’ is that arrangements are based on what tenants want

• Performance measurement that matters to tenants – linked to local service standards determined by tenants

• Scrutiny and inspection arrangements – must be tenant led if they are to be effective“The officers used to give us information and we provided comments. Now we are taking the lead – we say what we want to review and what type of information we want.”

Why is scrutiny different?

• Mystery shopping is a form of scrutiny• Performance management• Governance structure• Tenant led• Fact finding and analysis

Yes but… what does all this mean?• Tenants judging quality of services & deciding priorities for improvement • Tenants having direct line to the Board and Senior management to insist on changes• Debating in detail of each service important to tenants from a consumer perspective• It is more than reviewing performance• It is about testing that landlords meet national standards & local offers• Tenants listening to other tenant’s concerns• Tenant led improvement plans• Scrutiny requires different skills

The right structure for YOUR organisation and tenants

• Why this is important?

– Buy in from existing involved residents – Enlisting support from involved and new tenants– Defining scrutiny– Recruitment– Skills– Value for Money

How we fit in...

Wirral Partnership Homes: ASP

Board & Executive

Team

Scrutiny Panel

Umbrella Groups, TRAs, Street Reps,

Lone Voices

Panels and focus

groups

Customer feedback (eg

surveys, complaints)

Customer Inspectors

Moorlands Customer Involvement

Helena Co-regulation

Source: Housemark

Thinking about your structure National and existing service standards? Local offers? Existing participation structures? Reality checks – mystery shop; voids;

walkabouts? Existing action plans? Service improvement groups? Residents groups? Federations? E panels and reader groups?

Thinking about your structure

Role of satisfaction surveysDiversity in recruitment and selection of the

PanelHearing and including opinions from diverse

groupsTerms of Reference Code of Conduct

What else is an important ?

RecruitmentBuilding skillsCommunicationResources and supportValue for money

The circle of scrutiny

Get GoingFind out as much as possible about the service

•Information about the service offered •Customer satisfaction•Mystery Shoppers; Empty Property Auditors & Estate Walkabouts•Speak to tenants•Speak to staff

Understand

Understanding what works well, what does not and what needs to change

•Look at costs and performance•How do services compare with other landlords?•Good practice and benchmarking information•What does this tell us?

Decisions, decisions……..

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the service?

•Discuss with senior staff and Board/Council•Present findings •Tell tenants what you found•Write up recommendations•Present to different audiences – staff and tenants

So what?

Is that it?No - it all needs Monitoring & Evaluating

•Assess outcomes •Feedback to tenants and officers•Agree actions •Have they been implemented?

Whilst you start scrutinising another service

Help is out there……..

•National Tenant Organisations working with HOS•National Tenant Organisations collecting information to inform of progress on tenant panels•SEP working with CfPS on behalf of the TSA to review the lessons learnt from the co-regulatory champions•Accreditation Frameworks•Seminars – SEP on cashback on 6th Oct and big tenant panel conference in York on 30th November

What to keep a look out for• CLG final direction to the TSA in October 2011• Draft tenant standards from November 2011• New standards March 2012• Tenant Cashback pilot report 2012/13• CfPS and SEP report in January 2012 with top tips for tenants

and landlords and the progress of the co-regulatory champions• NTOs report in February 2012 on the different approaches

which tenants panel have taken and some basic guidance• Good practice and guidance on complaints and the role of

tenant panels 2011/12• Accreditation of tenant panels – later in 2012

Don’t forget…………….

• Tenants need patience & time to invest in scrutiny• Tenants need help and support to be effective• Tenants who volunteer need good analytical skills • Landlords need to publicise the work of the panel positively

within the organisation to all staff and get the leaders on board

• Landlords need time & resources to support scrutiny It really is hard work for tenants & landlords,

but it is rewarding

Thanks for listening -any questions?

Don’t Panic!We will soon have some published good practice Don’t be afraid to ask – we can and will help you

yvonne@tenantadvisor.netTel: 07867 974659

www.tenantadvisor.net