Tenants make their voices heard on the housing budget

We know it’s more important than ever to ensure your rent delivers value for money and that’s why the work of the Tenant Resource Group is so important.

This group provides tenants with an opportunity to influence council spending and keep an eye on important financial issues such as:

• Rent setting
• Rent collection
• The cost of maintenance programmes
• Outsourcing work to private contractors

Members of the Tenant Resource Group, Lesley and Andrea, say it is crucial that tenants have their say:

“Our rent money pays for services that we receive so it is only right that as customers we can have our say on council housing budget decisions. The tenants on the group play an important role in scrutinising the council’s finances and we liaise with senior staff to ensure our voices are heard. One exciting piece of news is that our long campaign to get tenants involved in the procurement of contractors is starting to pick up steam. We think it is really important that private contractors working on council housing understand that these are our homes and so we are looking forward to strengthening our involvement in selecting and managing contractors. The council is even running free procurement training this autumn to help equip residents with the skills needed to get involved in this area.”

Other issues that the Tenant Resource Group will be monitoring and scrutinising include ways to reduce rent arrears, looking into how 1000 new parking spaces will be funded, and making homes more energy efficient to help tackle rising energy costs.

The Tenant Resource Group is always looking for new members so if you would like to get involved please get in touch. The friendly group meet on the first and third Tuesday morning of each month at Challis Court in Holyrood. It doesn’t matter if you have never been involved in Tenant Engagement before, all you need is an interest in council housing and a desire to improve services and ensure value for money.

Our Tenant Engagement Team help to organise a wide range of groups and forums that ensure tenants and leaseholder voices are heard. Whether you want to ensure that your block is regularly cleaned to a good standard or the green and open spaces around your home are well maintained, you can help us improve our services. From being a green space monitor to becoming a block rep or a mystery shopper there is a role out there to ensure that you are helping us provide the best service possible. Just email or call 023 8083 3185 for more details.