WHY ARE TENANTS` COMPLAINTS NOT BEING HEARD?

 

Now the ombudsman  wants some answers

No surprise that formal investigations by the Housing Ombudsman, Richard Blakeway (pictured) have risen by 65% compared with last year, while enquiries and complaints of  the service have surged by 139 per cent in the last year .

The figures were published this week as the ombudsman launched a consultation on its three-year corporate plan from 2022 to 2025,

In this plan the ombudsman sets out how it will tackle an “unprecedented increase” in casework and to “reinforce the importance” of complaint-handling in the social housing sector.

 

 

 

 Community activists have long been concerned about the lack of accountability in the housing sector, particularly complaints to housing associations.

One of these  associations,the giant Liverpool based Riverside Housing Association, the biggest landlord in the Carlisle area, has been targeted by  Carlisle and District Tenants` and Residents` Federation.

A spokesman for the Federation said: “We welcome these new initiatives by the ombudsman. Riverside  is a law to itself and  in the experience of our members has never been properly held accountable since the Audit Commission was stopped from regular inspections about ten years ago.”

The ombudsman service is undergoing a major overhaul following the publication of the Social Housing White Paper, created in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire when questions arose about why residents’ complaints were not heard, or in some cases ignore

Complaints are likely to significantly increase even further as the white paper recommends a more consumer-focused social housing regulatory system.

Among several changes that have already taken place, the watchdog started publishing reports on all investigations in March in a bid to increase transparency.

In September, it opened applications for a new expert group that will focus on improving the accessibility of its complaints system, particularly for those without internet access, with low literacy, or whose first language is not English.

The new consultation, open until 12 November, sets out its four strategic objectives – extending fairness, encouraging learning, increasing openness and achieving excellence – and how it will achieve them.

The plan involves “significantly” increasing awareness and understanding of the ombudsman’s role, improving access, and taking a “intelligence-led” and proactive approach to improving landlords’ complaint-handling to encourage earlier and more local resolution . 

 Carlisle Tenants` and Residents` Federation publishes this blog. Information about the Federation is available on 01228 52227