Network Homes' resident panels respond to the Regulator’s tenant satisfaction consultation

In the Social Housing White Paper, the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) recommended new tenant satisfaction measures (TSMs) which were designed to allow your views to be heard a lot more. In this article on our website, we shared details on what the new measures are, who they apply to and the chance for you to share your feedback on them by responding to the Regulator’s consultation on the new measures. 

The consultation has now ended, and the Regulator is now reviewing the feedback received. As part of our commitment to transparency, we are sharing the response we submitted to the Regulator on behalf of our resident Local Panels.

This response to the consultation on TSMs was drafted on behalf of Network Homes’ Resident Panels in Hertford and London to reflect members’ opinions on the new measures. The response was built out of the discussions Local Panels in both Hertford and London had about the new measures. As a result, it reflects the views of Panel members and was not influenced by the views Network Homes staff members have on the forthcoming regulation. 

By responding to the consultation, our Local Panellists have made sure that residents’ voices have been heard by the Regulator. They have been involved in directly informing the way the Government will shape consumer regulation in social housing over the next few years.  

The process 

Our Research and Policy team provided resident Local Panels with an insight into the consultation, giving an overview of the potential impact that the proposed reforms will have on the way social landlords across England – including Network Homes – gather information on tenants’ satisfaction and assess their performance against regulation. We first collected ideas from the two official panel meetings in January 2022, and drafted an outline of key views, as well as questions requiring in-depth discussion. 

Following this, we held a focus group with three members of the London resident panel in February, and scanned through the main consultation document, providing a clear answer to the different questions. 

Although the panels in London and Hertford only account for a small proportion of our overall number of residents – 20,000 households overall- their function is to represent all our residents and are committed to engaging with Network Homes on a regular basis.  

What do our resident Local Panels think about the new tenant satisfaction measures? 

Overall, our resident panels welcomed the proposed reforms: 

• They emphasised the importance of the wider Social Housing White Paper in seeking to get the balance right in respect to landlords and tenants’ responsibilities.  
• They agreed with the White Paper’s mission to recreate strong connections between the two parties and ensure transparency and accountability at all times. 
• They agreed with the Regulator that the proposed TSM Standard sets clear expectations for registered providers.  
• They agree with the Regulator that social landlords should trial a variety of sampling methods and surveying channels to make sure the selected sample is as inclusive as possible and accurately reflect the demographic make-up of the tenants. 

However, challenges and concerns were raised with a few aspects of the new measures. 

• There were concerns raised regarding social landlords’ capacity to collect accurate information from a variety of residents. 
• They recognised the challenge social landlords might face in getting a sufficient amount of survey responses from a widespread and representative sample of the resident population. In that regard, they support the Regulator’s call for social landlords to start planning their survey frameworks before the regulation is implemented from April 2023. 

You can read the full response sent to the Regulator of Social Housing on behalf of our Local Panels below. 

Read the panel's response to the Regulator’s TSM consultation