The Audit Commission no longer carries out research on housing-related issues. This briefing summarises the key findings of our research that related to involving residents in housing.
Understanding why and when to involve residents can help achieve multiple aims
Lack of clarity about why social housing providers involve residents can create confusion and unrealistic expectations among residents.
Landlords typically have three reasons for involving residents:
- to improve services;
- to improve accountability to users; and
- to contribute to regeneration and community development.
Landlords may try to achieve one or all of these outcomes. Their ethos, history, and current business plans will determine their choice and priorities.
High-performing landlords are clear about what resident involvement will achieve.
The best organisations communicate their reasons to residents; and monitor and evaluate their efforts against their objectives.
In inspections, Arm's length Management Organisations (ALMOs) scored higher than housing associations for resident involvement. Landlords assessed as excellent for their overall services, also had high resident involvement scores.
The benefits of resident involvement can be significant
Benefits for landlords include improved performance on void levels and tenancy turnover; better working with contractors; and fewer design flaws in developments.
Where involvement gives individuals and groups extra skills and opportunities, this can have a positive impact on the sustainability of neighbourhoods.
Most landlords allow residents to engage in the way that suits them best. This allows landlords to:
- access a greater volume and variety of opinion;
- engage people in strategic budgeting decisions; and
- design approaches that are more inclusive and representative.
Landlords need to understand what it costs to involve residents
Landlords should critically review which resident involvement work is effective and what they cost.
Good landlords systematically track both the costs and benefits of involving residents. This gives them:
- better, more informed strategic decision-making about the future of resident involvement;
- greater accountability to residents about choices and spending on resident involvement; and
- the ability to decide and display the value, and assess value for money, of individual and overall resident involvement work.
Some approaches deliver better value for money
Landlords who involve residents to improve services have found that it does work and can provide value for money.
Landlords have used resident involvement to contribute to regeneration and community development, but the gains are long term and depend on other factors.
Many housing associations successfully involve residents on their boards. They invest in, and support, the process of selecting, training and appraising board members. And they are clear which of the three main roles for tenant board members they are aiming for:
- augmenting strategic decision making;
- lending a user perspective; or
- providing a diversity of challenge to the board.
Audit Commission resources
Landlords and other agencies can use previous Audit Commission reports to assess and develop their arrangements.