Agenda and draft minutes

The Chair, Councillor Matthew Lynch, welcomed everyone to the meeting and invited attendees to introduce themselves. 

Councillor Lynch explained that the purpose of the inquiry is to ensure that Chorley residents receive the best service and the highest standards. 

Members are reminded of their responsibility to declare any pecuniary interest in respect of matters contained in this agenda.

If you have a pecuniary interest you must withdraw from the meeting. Normally you should leave the room before the business starts to be discussed. You do, however, have the same right to speak as a member of the public and may remain in the room to enable you to exercise that right and then leave immediately. In either case you must not seek to improperly influence a decision on the matter.

Councillor Matthew Lynch declared a non-pecuniary interest in all items on the agenda.

Scott Butterfield and James Mulvaney from in:fusion will present the findings of the survey.

The Registered Providers who participated in the survey have been invited to attend. 

The Chair introduced Scott Butterfield and James Mulvaney from in:fusion Research.  in:fusion were commissioned to undertake the survey in April 2018 with the aim of reviewing feedback from social housing tenants around customer service, property maintenance and standards and engagement. 

The survey was posted to 4,000 tenants, with an option to respond online.  This represents around two thirds of the properties owned by Registered Providers.  The survey ran for a four week period commencing in May, with 731 responses in total (18.3%).  This is considered a solid response rate for this type of survey. 

Customer service

·                81.9% of tenants were satisfied with the initial speed of response with their HA. 

·                72.1% of tenants were satisfied with the speed of progress/ resolution with their HA. 

·                83.9% of tenants were satisfied with the helpfulness of staff at their HA. 

·                79.5% of tenants were satisfied overall with how their contact is dealt with their HA. 

Members noted that the majority of the comments relate to maintenance.  “Whenever I need to report a repair, I am met with politeness and helpful advice to deal with any emergency”, “When you ring up about a repair it takes so long it can take up to a month before they come out and look at it. Then a couple of weeks before they do the job”. 

Property standards and maintenance

·                72.9% of tenants were satisfied with the standard of their property when they moved in. 

·                73.4% of tenants were satisfied with the general grounds maintenance and cleaning service for their communal areas. 

·                77.8% of tenants were satisfied with the overall quality of their property. 

·                75.8% of tenants were satisfied with the repairs and maintenance carried out on their property. 

Members noted that the majority of the comments relate to issues with repairs.  “Nothing has been replaced in my property in 13 years. The standards have slipped a lot”, “Although the quality of the build of the property was excellent. There was however some confusion over the snagging that needed doing - any that took place - that was of poor quality & not in line with the standard of the property. Poor finish on numerous things”. 

Engagement and communication

·                72.7% of tenants agree that their HA keep them well informed about their services. 

·                60.5% of tenants agree that their HA provides opportunities for them to have their say. 

·                52.7% of tenants agree that their HA listens and acts on feedback. 

The majority of comments relate to a lack of communication and complaints not having been dealt with.  “I would like our landlord to be more communicative and listen to tenants on what we need and improvements”, “They send out yearly information and I know I can contact them if I require any. I am happy with the service”. 

Members noted comments relating to possible improvements.  “It can sometimes hard to get hold of the housing association maybe text messaging service where you can  ...  view the full minutes text for item 18.25