Decision Maker: Cabinet
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Is Key decision?: Yes
Is subject to call in?: Yes
The Housing Service Manager – Customer Division submitted a report on the review of Tenant Involvement and to recommend changes to improve the effectiveness of the current arrangements.
The review included consultation with tenants, including those involved in existing participation activities, research into current guidance on tenant participation, and a comparison with tenant engagement activities practiced in neighbouring local authorities.
It had been identified during the review that the Tenant Executive and Area Panels were not effective methods of engagement as they had low attendance and were not representative of the demographics of the tenant community. It was also recognised that the two remaining Tenant and Residents Associations (TARAs) were mainly social groups, with only limited evidence of local community issues being raised and discussed.
Alternative arrangements were proposed, including the use of the mobile office with an emphasis on being inclusive and reaching out to all parts of the community, and developing Service Review Groups, which would focus on specialist service areas enabling tenants to be involved in the matters of particular interest to them.
* RESOLVED –
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(1) |
That Area Panel meetings be discontinued.
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(2) |
That Service Review Groups be developed, that focus on specialist areas of the service, aligned to the Regulatory Standards.
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(3) |
That Tenant Executive as a consultative body be discontinued.
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(4) |
That the Estate Improvement Budget for the Borough be pooled.
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(5) |
That a Protocol be produced to ensure joint working with Community Assemblies, particularly in relation to joint community projects and initiatives in relation to the Estate Improvement Budget.
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(6) |
That funding from Tenant and Resident Associations (TARAs) be reallocated into neighbourhood/community events.
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(7) |
That Mastin Moor TARA and Newbold TARA be supported to become self-financing from 1st April 2015.
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(8) |
That the feasibility of a reward scheme for young tenants active in the community be investigated.
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(9) |
That the revised Customer Involvement Agreement at Appendix A to the report be approved. |
REASON FOR DECISIONS
To ensure that the Council meets its obligations in terms of tenant involvement in accordance with best practice and in the most effective and inclusive way possible.
Other reasons / organisations consulted
Meeting
Consultees
Assistant Executive Member for Housing
Contact: 01246 345135 Email: julile.mcgrogan@chesterfield.gov.uk Email: julie.mcgrogan@chesterfield.gov.uk Tel: 01246 345135.
Report author: Julie McGrogan
Publication date: 24/09/2014
Date of decision: 23/09/2014
Decided at meeting: 23/09/2014 - Cabinet
Effective from: 29/09/2014
Accompanying Documents: