Involving communities to shape social housing

Tenant and customer participation in social housing has moved up the agenda with the release of the Department for Social Development’s (DSD) consultation "A Tenant Participation Strategy for Northern Ireland: 2015 – 2020" as part of its Social Housing Reform Programme.

The aim of the Tenant Participation Strategy

This strategy explores how social landlords and tenants can work together to improve services and also considers what further initiatives could be introduced to expand the rights of tenants through tenant empowerment.  

The consultation:

• examines how tenants can become more involved and can participate in shaping and reviewing the services they receive;
• considers how landlords should develop a range of methods to promote, encourage and support tenants to participate meaningfully at all levels; and
• explores the role the Department for Social Development can have to support tenant participation and empowerment.

In launching the consultation, Minister Storey said:

“My vision for social housing is more than just providing a home for those in need; it is about creating communities with efficient services that respond to local needs.  The voices of tenants are vital and they should be encouraged and supported to become involved in shaping the services they receive from their landlords."

Shaping Social Housing: Involving Communities - 5th March 2015

Housing Rights Service will be holding a 1 day conference, ‘Shaping Social Housing – Involving Communities’, in conjunction with Supporting Communities NI to help stimulate ideas and discussion for those who want input into the strategy.  

The conference will look to how others have successully involved communities. Scotland is very much at the forefront with their Social Housing Charter. It gives social tenants and other customers an extensive role in Scottish housing policy development and management, including participating in the scrutiny of social landlords. Anne Cook from the Scottish Government will be attending the conference to talk about the Scottish experience. 

The conference also include the launch of research carried out by Dr Jenny Muir of Queen’s University Belfast, and commissioned by Housing Rights Service, which looks at how to include everyone, particularly ‘hard to reach’ or ‘easy to ignore’ groups, in the development of housing policy. 

There is a 10% discount on all bookings for this conference made before 5 February.