Why get involved?
We work with our customers to provide great communities where people live well.
We need to hear from our customers to know how to deliver our services in the best way. We want to know about your experiences and opinions.
By completing a survey, attending a meeting or doing some research for us, you can influence how services are delivered and amended.
Take a look at what customers have done with us recently, and what opportunities we currently have for you to make a change.
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Hear from one of our Involved Customers, Nana here |
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Hear from one of our Involved Customers, La Vern here |
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Hear from one of our Involved Customers, Sharon here |
Expenses and rewards package
All formally involved customers – those that are a member of a panel or take part in scrutiny reviews and research projects – will receive a £30 Giftpay voucher every month to cover internet and IT equipment costs. This is to cover the expenses related to attending online meetings and training as part of your involvement role.
Other costs such as travel expenses, catering, childcare etc will be paid for by Greatwell Homes or reimbursed, in addition to the £30 per month.
We understand each customer is different, so we have not set rules around what a formally involved customer must do. It is important that we respect difference and are flexible in how customers can contribute.
For ‘informally’ involved customers – for example those that reply to surveys or attend a one-off workshop – rewards for surveys will vary.
Each involvement opportunity will include clear communication on what the incentive is. It might be a Giftpay voucher for participation, or it might be a prize draw.
Training and support
We want to make sure you have everything you need to get involved and enjoy it. We offer lots of free training and support for all of our involved customers. We have a dedicated team of involvement officers that provide an induction, one to one support and all the help you need to understand different services we provide.
We can also get another customer to buddy up with you at the start until you learn the ropes. They are more than happy to do this if means more customers get involved.
In April 2024, some of our involved customers and staff did some training around inclusive communication. Read about the session here: Inclusive Communication
Free Online Training:
Green Sector Training
Energy Efficiency and Net Zero Webinar click here
Four Million Homes
Four Million Homes is an organisation providing guidance and training on tenant rights for free to tenants. It is a government programme as part of the levelling up agenda.
Here is a link to the Four Million Homes website: https://www.fourmillionhomes.org/. Greatwell Homes is supporting Four Million Homes and would encourage any customer to access the free courses and webinars.
The training events available either as in-person events in London, Birmingham, Leeds and Liverpool or online if you prefer to learn from home. Upcoming training sessions are listed above in the Free Online Training section. You can register yourself on any course on their website – all training sessions and webinars are free. Please contact us about support for attending in-person training sessions – community.involvement@greatwellhomes.org.uk
The online version of these training events are pre-recorded videos, with a presenter and slides in a lecture format. You can access the training sessions here, with more sessions being held throughout 2024. Topics so far include residents panels, knowing your rights to be heard, and local residents associations.
Webinars are a more informal approach to discussing a topic, with multiple speakers giving their point of view and expertise. The upcoming webinars by Four Million Homes are listed above in the Free Online Training section. You can also watch previous webinars on the Four Million Homes website here. Topics covered already include complaints, neighbourhood management, damp and mould, and anti-social behaviour.
Conferences
These conferences are for involved customers who want to learn new things and meet other customers and housing providers. If you are interested in attending, please contact gemma.ager@greatwellhomes.org.uk
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2nd December 2024 9am – 1:30pm Online |
Tackling Anti-Social Behaviour Digital Conference This winter we will be doing a scrutiny review of our anti-social behaviour service. To provide scrutiny members with some insights and up-to-date ideas, we are offering a couple of places on this online conference. If you are interested in taking part in the Anti-Social Behaviour Scrutiny review, please contact gemma.ager@greatwellhomes.org.uk https://www.westminsterinsight.com/conferences-and-events/tackling-anti-social-behaviour-digital-conference/ |
Housing Diversity Network Conference 2024
In October 2024, customers attended a conference with Lorraine Gibson to learn about how Housing Associations and councils are offering fair and equal opportunities for tenants. Read about the conference from Lorraine: Housing Diversity Network conference 2024
Tpas Customer Conference 2024
In July 2024, customers attended a conference by Tpas, a national tenant engagement expert organisation. Read about the conference from those that went:Tpas National Conference 2024
Tpas Scrutiny Conference 2024
In October 2024, a couple of the customer scrutiny team attended a conference with Nikki Glazebrook about scrutiny, hosted by Tpas. Read about what they learned here: Tpas Scrutiny Conference 2024
Join Tpas as a tenant member
Tpas have so much information about Housing and being an involved tenant. Greatwell Homes are a Tpas member, and our customers can join as members too, to access extra information and training opportunities.
Involved customer, Sophia Davis has created this guide to show you how to join Tpas as a tenant member: Joining Tpas Instructions_
Would you like to get involved?
If you would like to speak to us about any of these groups or sign up to receive the newsletter, please click below to get in touch.
If you are interested in knowing more about how you can manage your own home, you can find information on Right To Manage here.