Resident engagement: a challenge and an opportunity
I would hazard a guess that “delivering effective resident engagement” is a phrase that you will find in the pages of every registered provider’s (RPs) housing strategy or mission statement. Yet amidst all the challenges facing the housing sector, it can often be the one that causes the most head scratching and the most angst.
How can we get it right?
Recently, Just Housing Group (JHG) partnered with the Curiosity Society (CS) to work on a ground breaking resident-led project in one of Europe’s largest housing developments: Barking Riverside. More than 10,000 new homes, as well as millions of investment in new infrastructure, formed part of an impressive remodelling of a former industrial area near the Thames, with the delivery overseen by the local council, the Mayor of London and a leading housing association. A key part of the planning condition for the new development was a commitment to a resident-led body, initially called the Learning Forum, with members drawn from the local community. The project’s central aim was for this representative body to set up the future governing structure of the entire area, which would include a framework for practical, hands on control by residents of local assets like a community centre. More generally, it would become a powerful voice for the community on how their area was run.
This of course was a unique challenge to a unique area: yet the principles that led to a successful outcome are those that can, and should be, applied to all forms of resident engagement.
The first is to trust the residents: there is a lot of talent, experience and know how out there in our communities – and most importantly, a lot of people who want to help make their patch of the world a better place to live in. Importantly, you must find a way of harnessing this resident power at every stage: from establishing a truly representative structure that reflects the local area through to an ongoing set up that allows discussion and debate, while at the same time ensuring there are mechanisms that lead to outcomes, decisions and successfully completed tasks.
In the case of the Learning Forum, JHG and CS worked on a targeted open, recruitment plan to populate the board with representatives from across the area, including striking a balance between established and new residents, as well as different cultural groups. We ensured over a two year period, one interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, we had a rolling programme of meetings and working groups that utilised the latest collaborative techniques, from digital whiteboards to interactive management plans, to draw everyone into a focused discussion on outcomes. And we communicated and communicated: a web portal, newsletter and social media postings helped spread our work to the wider community.
You can take a look at a summary of our work here – and take a deep dive through this analysis: and our near miss on winning a Pineapple award here!
Whatever the challenge my message to RPs is the same: all RPs should approach resident engagement as a real opportunity, one that if done right can bring real benefits to their organisation and the wider community.