What I’ve been up to this month to champion your voice: A February update from Customer Involvement Specialist Jayne Tilolo.
At Honeycomb Group, making sure our customers are heard, and that we act on what you tell us, is at the heart of everything we do. Over the past month, I’ve been working with customers across the Group in lots of different ways to make sure your feedback continues to influence decisions and improvements. Here’s a look back at what we’ve been up to this month.
Customer Void Inspection: learning from your perspective
In January, I joined two customer volunteers to carry out void inspections in Smallthorne and Longton alongside our Void Specialist, Helen.
Our customer inspectors check empty homes before they’re re-let, using their experience as tenants to identify anything that might be missed. A key question we always ask is: would you be happy to move in yourself?
Wendy, one of the volunteers, shared: “I enjoyed doing the inspections. I feel that it’s my own time and I’m interested in seeing Staffs Housing’s properties in other schemes to have an insight into what happens when properties become empty.”
This feedback helps us maintain quality homes that customers can feel proud to live in.
Repairs Focus Group: conversations led by customers
Our Repairs Focus Group met on 22 January, and it was great to bring members together again. We welcomed Sharon Parkes, our new Health and Safety Manager, who talked about her role and plans for the year ahead so customers could understand how safety is being prioritised.
We also shared updates on how the repairs contract is going, current planned works, and changes to electrical safety regulations. The group gave really helpful feedback on our gas contractor Town and Country’s satisfaction forms and we had an honest discussion about call waiting times during November and December.
One positive change is that the group has introduced an open forum section in meetings, where members suggest topics for future agendas. This means the discussions are increasingly driven by tenants and what matters most to them.
Customer Assurance Group: shaping strategy together
The Customer Assurance Group met on 12 February, where I supported discussions around our latest complaints performance and customer voice report.
Members also gave feedback on our Customer Voice Strategy action plan, particularly focusing on how we can reach a wider and more diverse range of customers. We also shared an update on Honeycomb Group’s financial position and talked through photo and video consent processes. Their insight plays a really important role in holding us to account and helping us improve.
Supporting volunteers across Honeycomb Group
Three involved customers attended the Volunteering Steering Group this month. It was a great opportunity for them to meet volunteers from across the organisation, share experiences, and influence future plans.
They’re now helping to develop a volunteer newsletter, volunteer satisfaction surveys, and an annual thank-you event, making sure volunteer opportunities are shaped by the people who take part.
Becoming Dementia Friends: supporting you
Our Vice Chair and I also attended dementia awareness training delivered by Hazel from Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Alzheimer’s Society, where we both became Dementia Friends. The training was incredibly informative and helped challenge some of the myths around dementia. As well as small changes we can all make to support someone living with Dementia.
Ken, one of our involved customers, said: “I enjoyed it very much. So many people are personally touched by Dementia.”
Getting out and speaking to customers: being present in your communities
This month I’ve also been out attending scheme walkabouts, speaking directly with customers in their neighbourhoods about their experiences and how they can get involved.
Alongside this, I’ve been calling customers to complete tenant satisfaction surveys. These surveys are one of the key ways we measure how we’re performing as your landlord and identify where we need to improve. It’s been a great opportunity to connect with customers I wouldn’t normally speak to, hear honest feedback, and explain how people can get involved so we can continue hearing your voice consistently.
Learning together: The Customer Experience Conference
This month I attended the Customer Experience Conference with involved customers Wendy, Ken and Barry, an event that brings together housing providers and residents from across the country to share learning and improve services in social housing. Opportunities like this are really important because they help our involved customers build knowledge, understand the wider sector, and bring ideas back to help shape what we do at Honeycomb Group.
It was an early start with breakfast networking followed by a full day of sessions and breakout discussions. Barry said, “I am hoping to find out what other housing providers are doing and see how we compare.” Wendy shared, “I have been enjoying meeting other customers and comparing what they do and what we do,” while Ken told me he was particularly looking forward to the repairs discussions.
By the end of the day, everyone agreed it had been a valuable experience. Barry found it useful to see how other organisations make improvements, Wendy enjoyed hearing customers talk about how they had influenced change, and Ken highlighted the importance of demonstrating the value of social housing. It was great to see our customers learning, networking and gaining confidence, and we’ll be working together to bring those insights back into our groups to help inform future improvements.
Everything we’ve been doing this month shows the impact customers can have when we work together, from influencing services and shaping improvements to learning alongside us and holding us to account. Every conversation, piece of feedback, and involvement opportunity helps us understand what matters most and make better decisions together.
Want to get involved?
If you’d like to get involved, we’d love to hear from you. You don’t need any experience, just your perspective as someone who lives in one of our homes or used our services. There are lots of ways to take part, big or small, and your voice really can make a difference.
Email: Jayne.Tilolo@honeycombgroup.org.uk
Call: 01782 744533
