When a home becomes vacant, there is far more that happens than most people ever see before a new resident is welcomed in. What sets our approach apart is that this work isn’t done to our residents - it’s done with them.
Last year, we created a new Void Inspector role, bringing together a group of involved residents who use their lived experience to help ensure our empty homes are safe, high quality, and truly ready for their next chapter.
These inspectors are not external contractors. They are our customers - people who know exactly what it feels like to move into a new home - who generously give their time to help improve homes for others. That lived experience means they understand what really makes a difference on day one.
Alongside our specialist Property Team, they check not only safety and decency standards, but also the practical and emotional details that make a house feel like home.
Customer Voice Specialist Jayne Tilolo shared more: “Void Inspectors play such an important part in improving our homes. They bring real customer insight into the process and help us see our properties in a way only someone who lives in one of our homes can.
"Their feedback helps us raise standards and make sure homes feel ready to live in, not just ready on paper.”
Each inspector is assigned a patch, and when a home becomes vacant, they head out on an inspection. And that's not all - once any work is completed, they will return to ensure it's ready for a new resident.
This month, one of our over-50s homes in Stoke-on-Trent was nearly ready to re-let, so we asked Void Inspector Ken to head along for an inspection. Ken, who also has previous experience inspecting void homes for a local authority, found the home to be in good condition and ready for its next resident, with only a few minor tweaks needed.
Ken shared more about his approach: “I always look at a home as if I was the one moving in. This one was in good condition. It felt clean, safe, and welcoming. There were only a couple of small things to fix, like a window handle, and once that’s done, someone could move straight in without any worries.”
By involving residents directly in this process, we are ensuring our standards are informed by real lived experience. Our Customer Void Inspectors help us focus on what truly matters to people, provide extra reassurance that homes have been thoroughly checked, and support our commitment to creating properties that are safe, cared for, and ready to become homes.
For us at Honeycomb Group, this is resident voice in action: customers supporting customers, helping us raise standards, and playing a vital role in shaping better homes and services for everyone.
