Introducing the new Customer Feedback Panel members and our training towards scrutiny.
Written by panel members Hannah and Alisa.
It’s been an exciting few months for the Customer Feedback Panel. We’ve welcomed several new panel members - Alisa is one of them! You can meet the rest of the team here.
We’re also taking part in a three-month training programme with Tentacles Consultancy. The training is designed to strengthen our skills in scrutiny, so that we can examine, assess, and review service delivery across all areas of Alliance Homes. This will help us determine whether services meet customer expectations or require improvement.
From feedback to scrutiny
In January, we started our training with Claire Blacka from Tentacles Consultancy as part of our journey to becoming a scrutiny panel. During the first session, we focused on understanding what scrutiny is, what good scrutiny looks like, and how we can work as a panel to support better outcomes for customers.
Claire led us through activities that encouraged us to work together and find solutions to problems that Alliance Homes might encounter, such as issues with repairs or garden waste, while also considering how these affect us both as customers, and members of the panel. We also discussed how to present our findings to Alliance Homes’ management and Board, which was really valuable.
We shared our views on where Alliance is doing well and where things could be better.
At our March panel meeting, we looked at perception, perspectives, and the role of the panel. We also started shaping our terms of reference and code of conduct, which we’ll be able to share with you soon. It was a jam-packed session!
During this session, Claire led us through an activity where we each looked at a picture for a few moments and then shared what we remembered. Each of us noticed and recalled different details. This activity showed the importance of diversity on the panel and how it enables us to evaluate Alliance Homes' performance holistically and from individual perspectives.
National Housing Federation’s Customer Experience Conference
Written by panel member Alisa.
In February, I joined Alliance Homes’ Customer Engagement team at the National Housing Federation’s Customer Experience Conference. Aside from the great lunch, it was a really informative event, with 14 panels and talks to choose from. A standout moment was hearing chief executives from various housing associations acknowledge that customers have little choice in who their housing provider is. This really emphasised the importance of delivering the right services in the right way.
I also learnt more about the Regulator of Social Housing’s new consumer regulations, which set clear standards for landlords, and what these mean for us as customers. The new rules are designed to ensure that customers are treated fairly, they have safe, secure and well-maintained homes, and benefit from good service from their landlords. You can find out more about the standards by visiting the Government’s website here