I’m Sharon, the chair of ForHousing’s Repairs and Maintenance Service Excellence Group. I work with other involved tenants and ForHousing colleagues to review how repairs and maintenance services are performing and where we need to improve.
I wanted to share some details from our most recent meeting, where we chatted about a range of topics, with an aim to improve the everyday lives of tenants. Keep reading for a peek into our discussion.
Sharon, Chair of Repairs Service Excellence Group and ForHousing Tenant
There are some positive signs. Customer satisfaction has improved, reaching 84% for the month of March, and emergency repairs are performing well at 94.6% this year so far.
However, we are still seeing pressure in the repairs process. There are currently 1,349 repairs overdue, and areas such as damp and void properties need improvement. Work is constantly being done to reduce this backlog, but it is important to know that system issues have been a big reason for the delays.
As well as in the final quarter of the year the team have responded to all 81 significant damp and mould issues within the 10-day window. However, keeping to the target of 40 days for damp repairs is an area that is a focus for the team, and as a group we continue to challenge and monitor this closely.
We’ve been reviewing how contractors are measured, and it’s great to see the progress here. A new set of key performance indicators, (KPIs) are being developed to more appropriately reflect what matters to tenants. KPIs are a set of targets which help ForHousing, and our contractors stay on track with goals and make sure your home is safe and well maintained. The new KPIs focus on not just speed, but quality, communication, and overall satisfaction and importantly, they are a way we can hold Wates to account for how repairs are done in our homes. These are currently under negotiation with Wates.
Once agreed and finalised, this should be a great improvement for the experience we have as tenants when we have operatives completing jobs in our homes and helping consistency and quality of ForHousing’s service.
Voids (empty homes which are waiting for new tenants to move in) remains a key topic of conversation. As a group, we’ve had open conversations about the condition of the empty homes and issues in this area and the need for improvement. A positive step is that scrutiny group tenants will now be involved in void property inspections. Tenants in the group work with ForHousing colleagues to look at how a service works, why things are done in a certain way, and what could be improved to make a positive difference to the services we receive. This means they will be given a first-hand look into the voids process. We think this is important for transparency and understanding. It will also help ensure improvements are shaped by tenant experience.
One of the most encouraging updates is the focus on partnership working. Workshops involving over 200 colleagues from ForHousing, Wates and Liberty, were held in April. These were focused on customer service, behaviours and the importance of good engagement and communication with tenants. From the workshops working groups have been set up so both colleagues and tenants can look to improve the repairs and maintenance service as well as growing and understanding how repairs issues impact us day-to-day.
As a group, we’ve been clear: services must always be shaped around positive tenant experience, not just the motion of carrying out the work.
We know there’s still work to do, particularly in reducing backlogs and improving turnaround times. But we are seeing progress, and the Repairs SEG will continue to play a key role in holding services to account.
Being involved means we can make sure tenant voices are heard and acted on. If you would like to have your say then check out the website here Get Involved – ForHousing
