Every year, our Resident Representative Team (RRT) decides to focus on a particular service area and conduct a detailed scrutiny review. A scrutiny review will take different forms, but generally a review will pick a topic and, using a framing question, gather evidence and insight to better understand how that area of work might be improved. Tenants will work with staff, and sometimes external facilitators, to produce a series of recommendations which the organisation will genuinely consider. Accepted recommendations will go into an action plan and tenants will monitor progress against agreed deadlines.
The RRT has so far conducted three scrutiny reviews, and these were their recommendations:
2024 – Red Kite’s approach to tenant-led scrutiny
This review was prompted by the RRT’s desire to develop Red Kite’s approach to tenant-led scrutiny. In response to the social housing sector’s new regulatory landscape and a recent ‘verification’ exercise on implementation of the recommendations made by a previous scrutiny review, RRT decided to undertake a ‘scrutiny of scrutiny’ review.
The review was informed by the question: ‘Scrutiny at Red Kite will be considered a success when…’
Aims
- To distil RRT learning through research and their previous experience, in order to improve the current scrutiny process
- To produce delivery of a framework outlining a sector-leading approach to support and guide delivery of future tenant-led scrutiny reviews at Red Kite.
Result
Two documents were produced:
- Tenant Scrutiny Review Principles: a tenant-to-staff document which helps to set the parameters and align expectations for tenant scrutiny reviews at Red Kite
- Tenant Scrutiny Review Guidelines: a tenant-to-tenant document, supporting future tenant scrutineers, empowering them to drive these important reviews.
2023 – Damp, Mould & Condensation (DMC)
Completed actions for service improvement:
- Training to ensure accurate note-taking by Relationship Advisors relating to DMC cases
- Individual DMC action plan produced for each case, to include clear communication on action and timescales
- Introduce care call or visit three months after DMC remedial works and inspection 12 months later to ensure all DMC issues have been rectified
- Review current content in moving in packs, ensuring there is up-to-date DMC information included
- Information on our DMC service is included in every sign-up pack
- More regularly updated information on DMC in our newsletters and online to increase awareness of the service, particularly in winter months
- Information on DMC included in call holding messaging on telephony system
- Named specialist staff member allocated to all but the very simplest of DMC cases
- DMC case reference number given to every tenant reporting an issue.
As part of their scrutiny review RRT sent one of their members out for a day to shadow one of our Technical Officers - read about tenant volunteer Ron's 'damp day out'
2022 – Customer Contact Centre
Completed actions for service improvement:
- RRT created and sent a contact sheet to tenants with helpful contacts
- Improve website to ensure clarity of how to contact Red Kite and feed back
- Sample survey of tenants who have recently reported complex repairs
- Introduce 'call me back' option on our phonelines to reduce waiting times during busy periods
- Reduced number of ‘press 1 for…’ options for tenants calling Red Kite
- Ensure internal teams and contractors have secure access to and use relevant information about vulnerable tenants
- Provide training and systems development to ensure Red Kite staff can easily capture and retrieve information to update tenants
- Strengthen technical repairs knowledge for Relationship Advisors through training and links with Property team.