STAC FAQ’s

10 frequently asked questions about the Homes in Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee

1.  Why set-up a Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee?

The Grenfell fire in June 2017 and the publication of the Government’s Social Housing Green Paper in August 2018 have led to a re-focussing of the ways in which social housing customers can influence the work of the landlord.

In November 2020 the Government published its Housing White Paper called ‘The Charter for Social Housing Residents’. This document specifically states the expectations now being placed on social housing landlords and mean that residents can expect ‘to be able to hold their landlord to account, know how it is performing and what decisions it is making’ and  ‘to have your voice heard by your landlord’.

These external drivers have given us the opportunity to reflect upon on our approach to customer involvement, scrutiny, and governance.

The creation of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee will be a keyway a means by which the ‘tenant voice’ can ensure Homes in Sedgemoor meets its legal, regulatory, and business objectives.

More importantly, the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee will ensure we meet our service standards and commitments to all Homes in Sedgemoor customers in all the areas in which we operate.

A group of involved customers has worked with us and our advisor from Tpas, as a Steering Group, to co-design and co-create this new formal structure because it was important to us that we had customer input from the start.

2.  Will the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee be a ‘box ticking’ group?

No.

Homes in Sedgemoor has a main board which has ultimate responsibility for the governance of the organisation. It also has to fulfil its obligations to Sedgemoor District Council which is does through a management agreement.

The Board must ensure that the organisation meets its business, legal and regulatory objectives. The regulatory objectives for social housing include ‘consumer standards’; these cover the day to day landlord services such as repairs, managing estates and communities, allocation of homes and collecting rent.  Our aim is that the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee will provide customer-based assurance to the Board that we are delivering on our service commitments and exceeding the aims of the ‘consumer standards’ to all Homes in Sedgemoor customers.

So, this group will not be ‘ticking boxes’ because it will have a direct link to our governance; it will be a formal group; and it will have a clear reporting mechanism to and from the Board. 

The diagram aims to show how the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee will link to the overall governance of the organisation.

3.  What do mean when you talk about ‘customer assurance’?

The Board will always want and expect assurance on the many aspects of our business including, for example, health and safety, finances, employment practices AND that we are delivering our services in the right way to all our customers. ALMO Boards seek assurance from lots of different sources such as performance data, the executive team, external audits, specialist independent advisors and legal experts

The Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee will become one of the many ways the main board has of gaining assurance and, very specifically, assurance about the customer experience of our services.

4.  Who will benefit the most from the work of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee – the landlord or the customers?

Homes in Sedgemoor and our customers will benefit because it will put the ‘tenant voice’ at the heart of governance. It will ensure we meet all our commitments to all our customers; and it will enable customers and landlord to work together on our shared vision.

5.  I’m confused! You use terms such as the ‘tenant voice’ but you also talk about customers…so which one is the right term?

We regard anyone who lives in one our homes as a customer; and we must make sure we deliver agreed standards of service for all our customers.

Legally, there will be an agreement with us (either a licence agreement or a tenancy agreement or a leasehold agreement) that gives you your rights to occupy the property. This means you can apply to be a customer member of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee because you are the ‘named tenant’.

The term ‘tenant voice’ is one that our Government regulator uses as they want to ensure that we know and understand the needs of all our customers – whether they are a licensee or a tenant or a leaseholder.

6.  What’s in it for me if I am selected to become a member of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee?

You will have the opportunity to profoundly influence housing services and policies at Homes in Sedgemoor. You will be given opportunities to develop your skills and knowledge of housing; and if you are motivated to improve lives and communities then you will see how good quality housing and housing services really do help to change individuals and communities.

7.  How much influence will the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee really have?

It will have a substantial influence because it will have a reporting framework to and from the Homes in Sedgemoor Board (the legally accountable decision-making body); and it will meet with and be supported by the Director of Neighbourhoods. A member of the Homes in Sedgemoor Board will be nominated, by the Board, to be a member of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee alongside a District Councillor and 9 residents.

8.   How is the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee different from tenant groups and other forms of customer involvement?

The formality of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee makes it different as does the fact that it will have a direct reporting link to and from the Board. The Terms of Reference for the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee has more detail about its specific responsibilities.

9.  Is this the same as the scrutiny?

No.

In-depth scrutiny of our services will continue as a separate activity and we will be exploring new ways of involving more customers in scrutiny activities and projects. The findings of scrutiny would be seen by the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee to ensure that recommendations and actions are followed through.

The work and commitment of all our involved tenants/customers, over many years has been of significant value and Homes in Sedgemoor is hugely grateful for the work of these individuals and groups.  External drivers from government have given us the opportunity to reflect upon on our approach to customer involvement, scrutiny and governance and we recognise that Homes in Sedgemoor’s ‘tenant voice’ needs a more formal route if we are to meet our legal and regulatory obligations. Times are changing and we must change as well.

10.      Can I still be involved in my local groups and activities if I become a member of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee?

Yes.

Local involvement and work in your community will remain important and we would always encourage and support, where and when we can, local involvement activities.

We appreciate that the time commitment for the being a member of the Sedgemoor Tenants Assurance Committee might not suit some of our customers and so developing ways by which the ‘tenant voice’ can be heard locally and individually through targeted involvement activities will be another way to ensure we are gathering views and ideas from all our customers. This means building upon the local involvement work we currently do and finding new ways to engage with more customers.