My area – Oldham

Get involved

We’re passionate about working together with you to provide services that make a big difference to you and your community.

Your involvement helps shape the way we do things so that we’re always listening, acting on feedback, and improving so that we can be the best landlord possible.

Find out more about the opportunities for you to get involved!

Customer Committee 

The Customer Committee is made up of ten ForHousing tenants and community members that were selected from a group of over 140 people.

The committee members work together with the ForHousing board to co-create services that matter to you and your community.

By using their experience and knowledge of local issues, the Customer Committee help us make positive changes within your community and work towards our shared vision of improving lives.

If you’d like to find out about upcoming opportunities to get involved in the Customer Committee, please email communities@forhousing.co.uk.

Community Voice 

We currently have three Community Voice groups, in Salford, Oldham and Knowsley.

Members work together to represent their community by identifying issues and discovering solutions so we can support everyone to feel safe and comfortable, both in and outside their homes.

Community Voice is open to all because we truly want to hear from everyone who lives in your area about how we can help make your community a better place to live and thrive – whether you’re a ForHousing tenant or not, you can work with us to make a difference.

Community Voice also helps to allocate the Community Fund budget, a pot of money used to financially support local groups and projects, making your community a great place to live.

If you’d like to find out more about opportunities to get involved with the Community Voice, please email communities@forhousing.co.uk.

Customer & Tenant Inspectors 

We know we can always do better – that’s why we love to work alongside you and your community to understand where we could improve.

Inspectors play a key role in ensuring that our Customer Service Standards are met throughout the year.

This is done through a range of inspections such as mystery shopping through the service centre, inspections of caretaking and cleaning within high-rise and low-rise flats, and inspections of grounds maintenance within the estates.

If this sounds like something you’d be interested in trying, then reach out to us at communities@forhousing.co.uk.

Scrutiny Panel 

The Scrutiny Panel independently reviews our services based on feedback we’ve had from you and your community.

The panel makes recommendations and then works closely with us to agree how we can improve what we do so you have the best experience possible, every time.

The panel meet four times a year, but they regularly meet up online, and complete work independently outside of these meetings.

We want you to be involved in making decisions that impact your community, big or small. This helps us to find out the areas where we need to do better – and what is most important to you.

For more information on opportunities to join the scrutiny panel, please email communities@forhousing.co.uk.

Be Proud Awards 

We love to recognise the achievements and contributions that you and others make in your community.

It makes a big difference, creating a big, bright place where everyone feels supported and welcomed.

That’s why we host our annual ‘Be Proud’ awards – an opportunity to celebrate and shout out the amazing community spirit throughout the year!

Information about when nominations for this year’s Be Proud will open will be announced later this summer! Keep an eye on our social media to stay up to date.

Funding

We want to work with you to make a difference to where you live.

Did you know that if you have an idea for a project that could benefit your community, that funding is available for you?

So, if you’re part of a community group, school, charity, or similar organisation – we want to hear from you!

The type of fund depends on where you live, so keep reading to find out more.

Community Fund

Do you deliver activities in a ForHousing neighbourhood? You could be eligible for a Community Fund grant of up to £500!

The fund offers financial support to local groups so they can keep delivering services and projects in their community.

If this sounds like something you’d like to apply for, click here to get the ball rolling.

The deadline to submit your applications is the first Friday of every month.

You can also learn more about how grants are award through the criteria and guidelines document. 

To see how the Community Fund has supported people in your community already, take a watch of the video below – soon, that could be you!

Local Improvement Fund 

You know your community best – and we want to empower you to make changes where they’re needed.

The Local Improvement Fund is used to support small scale improvements within ForHousing communities. There is up to £3,000 available per project.

So, if you have an idea or suggestion about things that could be improved in your area, we want to help you make this happen – submit an application here!

You can learn more about how grants are awarded through the criteria and guidelines document. 

Other funding 

Sometimes, the funds above might not be right for you – but there is still a way to create positive change in your community!

We work with different partners to make more funding opportunities possible for people.

To learn about the grants currently available in your area, please contact us on communities@forhousing.co.uk.

Local offers

Your feedback is really important to us. It tells us what we’re doing right, and also where we can improve so that we can make sure we’re providing services that meet your needs.

Following on our Community Conversations project in 2020/21, where we worked with you to find out what was important to you and your local area, we’ve developed Local Offers. Importantly, these are tailored to each of the areas we operate in and respond to local need – meaning that how and what is being delivered will be different depending on where you live. And as well as listening to you, we’ve also taken into account the feedback we’ve had from complaints we’ve received and satisfaction surveys we’ve sent out.

But Local Offers aren’t where it ends – our conversations with you will keep going, because what you say and how you feel about the services we provide are important to us. So we’ll be continuing to ask what are the key issues for you, including through the development of the Together with Tenants Charter. Watch this space for more!

Neighbourhoods, community and tenancy management

What you told us: You really value the green spaces and the environment of your local areas and would like more opportunities to connect with these spaces and for them to be well maintained. You want your neighbourhoods and homes to be clean and safe.

We will:
• Work with you to improve local green spaces and the environment through the creation of a local improvement fund
• Support community groups to create and deliver projects to improve local areas
• Work in partnership to effectively manage estates and neighbourhoods e.g. fly tipping
• Maintain communal areas through cleaning, grounds maintenance and special projects
• Undertake regular safety checks in communal areas including fire safety and inspecting areas to check they are free from hazards

What you told us: Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) is something that negatively affects your sense of wellbeing.

We will:
• Offer a clear and simple process to report ASB
• Review and triage any report of ASB within two working days
• Work in partnership with other agencies like the Police or Local Authority in cases of domestic abuse and safeguarding
• Review our approach to measuring satisfaction with ASB cases to ensure that we can improve our service and understand why tenants may not be satisfied with the service
• Work in partnership with other agencies, the Police and local community groups to tackle ASB through positive community development, coordination and engagement projects

What you told us: You want us to listen and offer homes and services for a diverse range of people that are suitable for their needs and provide support where needed.

We will:
• Offer advice and support to help you stay in your home, including tenancy sustainment services and links to local partnerships and support services
• Provide a range of specialist accommodation and support services, which will vary in each geographical area, for individuals with a range of needs, including extra care, supported housing, individuals who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, care leavers, veterans and those with mental health needs
• Provide information to tenants who would like to move home through mutual exchange
• Where appropriate, offer an aids and adaptation service based on assessment of need

Repairs and Maintenance

What you told us: You would like us to improve our communication around repairs and maintenance and for us to respond to reports in a timely and courteous manner.

We will:
• Review our timescales for undertaking routine repairs, reducing from 100 days to 30 days
• Respond to emergency repairs within 24 hours
• Improve how you report a damp and condensation issue with your home
• Inspect any damp and condensation issue that is reported within ten days
• Improve how we communicate with you about repairs

A safe, well maintained home

We will:
• Let you know in advance when your home is due for any improvement works
• Visit your home to carry out an annual gas safety check
• Undertake regular safety checks in communal areas including fire, asbestos, water and lift safety

Tenant Engagement and Involvement

What you told us: Having lots of strong connections in your local area improves your wellbeing.

We will:
• Through our Community Development Team, work with your local community to develop and deliver activities to support you to build relationships locally
• Promote and support you to access our Community Fund
• Explore opportunities to improve digital inclusion

What you told us: You want to work alongside us and be directly involved in creating and designing activities and services that work for you.

We will:
• Commit to co-production as our central way of working with you and co-producing your ideas to improve your quality of life. We will do this through our Community Voice forum, by supporting the formation of local community groups, and creating regular spaces for ForHousing staff and tenants to come together to share ideas and build connections
• Create a Customer Committee who will work as part of our Board to improve oversight and increase accountability
• Work with you to co-create the Together with Tenants charter
• Provide opportunities for you to engage with us on key issues that are important to you e.g. repairs and maintenance

Communication and Customer Service

What you told us: You want us to be more accessible and more open with our communication.

We will:
• Provide a range of ways for you to contact us, adapting to circumstances such as COVID-19 quickly
• Provide a clear and simple feedback, complaints and redress process
• Support you to develop your own community update methods e.g. newsletters

Income Management

What you told us: You want a variety of methods to pay your rent and would like to feel supported when you need it.

We will:
• Provide a range of payment methods that are convenient to you and give you the opportunity to pay in a way that suits your needs
• Provide advice, guidance and support when you need it, including access to money and debt advice and referrals to tenancy sustainment and other support services
• Provide a range of employment support services