Innovative Involvement
The future depends on what we do in the present
So, what’s new in Community Involvement? Well, after it was recognised that the most effective way of encouraging the widest involvement of residents was to offer the widest range of involvement choices, the Association developed new and innovative approaches to participation to ensure every tenant who wants to participate, can participate. These new methods are proving to be very successful and have prompted the Association to make many changes to the way we provide our services to you, our customers:
Newydd 90 uses a questionnaire based system for consulting on a range of subjects. Any tenant can join and will receive up to four questionnaires a year with the chance of winning £25 every time a questionnaire is returned.
Community Panels are solely made up of tenants who decide the format and agenda for each meeting. The aim is to look at performance, policy, customer care, consultation and to represent views of tenants. Meetings are held every 8 weeks in each region.
Advisory Groups are targeting under-represented groups as at present, involvement from ethnic minorities, youth, disabled, gay, lesbian and bisexual residents and various religions is very limited. It is therefore intended that residents meet to further discuss any issues which affect the delivery of housing services.
Task and Finish Groups are used to discuss specific areas of work e.g. service charges, anti-social behaviour etc. and are intended to closely examine and streamline procedures. Meetings are arranged at the request of the Community Panel or Advisory Group..
Tenants Groups have always been encouraged, however, links have now been strengthened by providing a direct route to the Community Panels to ensure their sustainability. If however, there is not enough interest on your estate or in your scheme to form a tenants group, you could always volunteer to become an estate champion.
Board Membership is set to evolve after the 2008 AGM as elected members will become full Board members and will be able to directly influence the strategic direction of the Association.
Reading Panels are made up of tenants who review published material and suggest ways to improve its readability.
Audit Committee is currently made up of Board Members, however, it is proposed that part of the membership be drawn from tenant elected members of the Newydd Board or even Community Panels to ensure tenants are involved in ensuring that improvement and compliance is carried out in accordance with tenants requirements.
Annual General Meetings currently have a `Tenant Feedback Event’ in order to inform tenants of the changes that have been made as a result of their involvement; to test out opinion in a number of areas using `Quizdom’, a studio voting system; to focus future consultation activity and to increase tenant attendance and involvement in the AGM.
Tenants Festivals' are held annually with tremendous attendance. These events are aimed to be fun for the attendees and encourage participation.
Best Value Reviews involve tenants in their working groups to ensure that all improvements are for the benefit of the end user.
Tenants Surveys are carried out every 4 years and the next one is due this year. The results of the survey are used to direct services, assist in developing strategies and also to focus community involvement activities as the surveys outline the issues that face residents that may need addressing. Surveys will be completed by staff/volunteers at estate road-shows which will be held during the summer and also at the tenants festival.
The Consultation Network was launched at the 2007 AGM and is aimed to provide even more consultation options for residents by asking for volunteers to register their interest in various aspects of the Association’s services. The Network is aimed to run alongside Newydd 90 but be more flexible to changes needed and provide faster response times.
If you want any more details or would like to join any of the Groups, please contact your local housing office (see Contacts page) or email enquiries@newydd.co.uk