Housing Customer Service Standards

Standards you can expect from our service.

This page sets out the standard of service you can expect to receive from the Council as a landlord. It includes the allocation of our properties as well as their management and maintenance.

The standards meet national requirements set out by Government. We have also included local commitments which are particular to North Warwickshire. These service promises and actions have been discussed and agreed with the Borough Wide Tenants Forum.

We will revise our customer promises annually and are keen to have your feedback. If you have any comments to make on our local standards or whether we are meeting the national standards we would like to hear from you.

Customer Service

We will be fair and open with our tenants,encourage mutual respect and personalise our services wherever we can.

Tenancies

• Tenants have secure tenancies.
• We will provide a tenant’s handbook about the services we provide and what responsibilities they are expected to undertake.
• Tenancy conditions will be explained to all new tenants during a settling-in visit to their home.
• We will work proactively with tenants to understand their needs and provide support to maintain tenancies.

Communication

• To provide clear, jargon free information in a range of formats about the services and choices we provide and the standards you can expect.
• To provide customers with up-to-date contact information to enable them to take requests for services in a way that suits them.
• When a customer contacts us to be helpful and provide clear information and tell them who will deal with their enquiry.
• To act to address customers’ needs and retain their requirements so they only have to tell us once.
• To protect the information tenants give us and not share it with third parties. On request you may see the personal information that we hold about you.
• To respect your right to privacy and confidentiality at all times.
• To act on complaints promptly and learn from compliments and complaints to improve our services.
• To provide comprehensive information about services, standards and performance in regular newsletters and on our website.

Neighbourhood and Community

We will act to ensure the neighbourhoods we serve are places where people choose to live by acting quickly to resolve issues and promoting community engagement.

• To act to ensure our neighbourhoods are safe, clean and nice places to live by working with tenants locally and promoting good community relations.
• To promote respect between neighbours when we are dealing with anti social behaviour.
• To act on complaints confidentially,quickly and sensitively and keep tenants informed about action taken.
• To agree a standard for neighbourhoods and act proactively to keep that standard.
• To set out a cleaning standard for communal areas and to act to sustain and actively monitor the standard
• To promote a zero-tolerance culture of malicious complaints

Lettings

• We will let our homes in a fair, transparent, and efficient way that considers the needs and aspirations of tenants and potential tenants.
• We will offer support and provide proactive tenancy services to help people sustain their tenancies.
• We will provide a settling in visit for all new tenants within 6 to 8 weeks of the start of their tenancy.
• To provide applicants and tenants wishing to move with access to clear and relevant advice about their housing options and free access to information about other tenants who would like to do a mutual exchange.
• We will support and encourage tenants who need to move to smaller accommodation.
• Our allocations scheme will ensure we are able to meet the housing needs of our applicants and aims to make the best use of our stock.
• To provide applicants with comprehensive information about properties which are vacant and how we let our homes
• To provide help and assistance for applicants and tenants to enable them to clearly understand their priority for re-housing, other housing options available and to make choices.

Tenant Involvement

• We will give every tenant the opportunity to have a say about how and what services are provided in a way that suits them and to use their feedback to make improvements.
• To ensure the feedback from all tenants is used to influence housing services and tenants can get directly involved in a way that suits them.
• To publicise how tenants getting involved has had an impact.
• To ensure tenants are well informed about housing services and issues that will affect them and have the opportunity to tell us their views.
• To encourage tenants to get involved locally.
• Widely publicise local meetings,neighbourhood visits and promote community events.
• To help Community Panels to support tenants locally and give their views at the Borough Wide Tenants Forum.

Maintenance Service

• We will use our technical expertise and knowledge to make decisions to do the right work at the right time, to be keen on costs whilst providing a high-quality service and to keep tenants fully informed about both repairs and improvement works to their homes.
• We will continue to provide programmes of work which ensure our properties meet the Decent Homes Standard.
• If we cannot provide a complete repair s part of our response repairs service,we will undertake the work as part of a planned programme of work and provide an indication of the timescale.
• To respect the homes of our tenants and carry out work to a high standard.
• To carry out repairs right first time, being sensitive to tenants’ circumstances and at an appointment time convenient to them. Where possible we will confirm the appointment and provide a reminder.