Recorded webinars
Complaints: Know your rights
52 mins
This online webinar discussed complaints which was the priority topic raised by our Resident Sounding Board.
It included:
- Speakers from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities discussing the policy context, background to their current approach around complaints, the strengthening of the powers of the Housing Ombudsman Service, and their Make Things Right Campaign
- A representative from the Housing Ombudsman Service who spoke about the role of the Ombudsman (what it does and doesn’t do), new powers under the Social Housing Regulation Act, and proposed changes to the Complaint Handling Code.
- Resident involvement in complaints handling, and scrutiny around complaints
- Residents’ experiences of being involved in the complaints process.
Speakers:
- Andrew Dack, Team Leader of Social Housing Sponsorship and Redress, DLUHC
- Nicole Bickerdyke, Senior Policy Advisor, Social Housing Redress Policy, DLUHC
- Tom Durham, Strategic Communications, DLUHC
- Polly Cox, Sector Learning and Development Manager, Housing Ombudsman Service
- Helen Watkinson, Housing Ombudsman Resident Panel Member, Stage 2 resident panel member, now Resident Complaints Champion, Scrutiny Panel Chair
- Lizzie Spring, a retired Voluntary Sector manager, rents a flat in Central London
- Leah Stephens, Cobalt tenant and member of the Tenant Consultative Panel
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Social Housing Regulation Act – Consumer Standards consultation
53 mins
This online webinar discussed the four draft consumer standards that the Regulator of Social Housing is proposing to introduce from April 2024. This is alongside a new Code of Practice for Consumer Standards, and follows on from changes to the way that Registered Housing Providers will be regulated within the new Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 which has just passed into law.
The webinar gave residents the opportunity to discuss the changes directly with representatives from the Regulator of Social Housing.
The four standards:
- The Safety and Quality Standard– providing safe and good quality homes
- The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard– requiring openness, fairness and respect to residents
- The Neighbourhood and Community Standard– requiring engagement with relevant parties
- The Tenancy Standard– requiring fair allocations and lettings, and requirements on how tenancies are managed and ended
The draft consumer standards set out the proposed required outcomes and specific expectations that Registered Providers of Social Housing will be expected to achieve and will mean a change in the way they are accountable to residents.
Speakers:
- Fleur Priest Stephen, Head of Tenant Engagement, Regulator of Social Housing
- Mila Simpson, Strategy Manager, Regulator of Social Housing
- John Harris, Chair, Cornwall Housing Tenants Forum
Please note: the consultation is now closed, Four Million Homes has submitted a response to the Regulator based on discussions in the webinar. This will be published on the website shortly.
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Presentations:
Leaseholders – know your rights – August 2023
36 mins
This online session focussed specifically on leasehold management and leaseholder issues and covered:
- Service charge billing and calculations
- Major works consultations
- Building safety compliance
- Subletting
Speakers are:
- Blase Lambert, Four Million Homes
- Mark Plummer, Head of Service Charge Reform, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
- Joolz Masters, Lead of Resident Strategy and Insights in the Building Safety Remediation Portfolio, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
- David Eyles, Leaseholders Association of Southwark 2000 (LAS2000)
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Presentations:
Anti-Social Behaviour Webinar – June 2023
90 mins
This Four Million Homes session:
- explains the different types of anti-social behaviour and what landlords should do to prevent and tackle anti-social behaviour
- outlines the need to report problems, how to report them and what to do if your landlord does not deal with your report properly
- features an example of what projects landlords have set up to prevent and tackle anti-social behaviour
Speakers are:
- Paul Kelly, Trainer - Four Million Homes Programme
- Charlotte Hilliard, Policy Development and Delivery Officer (ASB Lead for Social Housing), Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities. Presentation available here.
- Nick Humphries, Anti-Social Behaviour Task Force, Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities. Presentation available here.
- Nick Reynolds, Chair - National Federation of Tenant Management Organisations, Birmingham City Council tenant
- Terry Fredricks-Greenslade, Anti-Social Behaviour Officer, Colchester Borough Homes. Presentation available here.
- Suzanne Page, Active Essex. Presentation available here.
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Damp and Mould Webinar – May 2023
80 mins
This Four Million Homes session:
- explains the different types of damp and their causes;
- outlines the need to report problems, how to report them and what to do if your landlord does not deal with your report properly; and
- explains what landlords should do to prevent and tackle damp and mould.
Speakers are:
- Blase Lambert, CEO - Confederation of Co-operative Housing
- Leslie Channon, Public Affairs and Tenant Engagement Officer - TAROE
- Luke Spanton, Head of Standards in Rented Homes - Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
- William Longhill, Head of Social Housing Regulation - Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Guidance notes are available here.
DLUHC presentation is available here.
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Four Million Homes launch livestream
47 mins
Four Million Homes is a catalyst for change in social housing.
The programme was launched on 19 April 2023. Speakers included:
- Baroness Scott of Bybrook OBE, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Faith and Communities, and Lords Minister)
- Ruhena Ahmed, Deputy Director, Social Housing Quality and Residents, DLUHC
- Lesley Channon, Public Relations & Tenant Engagement Consultant, TAROE
- Blase Lambert, Confederation of Co-operative Housing
- Jenny Osbourne, TPAS
- Gavin Smart, CIH
- Abraham Nomafo, Public Participation, Consultation and Research (PPCR)
[Closed captions are enabled on the video, click to show].
The launch introduces the Four Million Homes programme which will provide free knowledge, guidance and training on resident rights and how to stand up for them, how to deal with difficult landlords, how to form and get involved in resident groups and how to shape the services they pay for. Knowledge is power and we aim to empower residents to demand that their homes and neighbourhoods are well maintained, clean, and safe.