Thurrock Council is committed to involving tenants in shaping housing services to meet the needs of current and future customers. We believe that all council tenants and leaseholders have a right to participate in activities that enable them to influence the delivery of housing services they receive.
Residents have the right to decide their own level of involvement. We want to ensure that a wide range of information is provided to residents in a variety of ways to support and encourage involvement in the management of their homes.
We are committed to offering a Menu of Opportunities for residents to be involved.
Residents often don't know how they can be involved and may want to be involved on a basis that is informal and suits their lifestyle. The menu allows for a variety of informal ways that don't require a regular commitment of time:
You can register with us to get your views across by e-mail, text or using the web site. You could sign up to receive updates on services or receive and comment on proposals via e-mail. This would mean that you can get your views across without attending a meeting or even leaving your home!
You can sign up to join our panel which meets regularly and is asked to comment on specific ideas, policies or proposals.
You could sign up to attend small discussion groups and comment on specific issues that concern you e.g. anti-social behaviour.
You could register with us so that you can make your views heard by telephone. You would have a chance to complete general surveys by phone and be offered the chance to comment on specific issues that concern you.
You don't have to make a big commitment; maybe all you will want to do is take part in completing a questionnaire. You could register for a postal questionnaire once or twice a year or for someone to visit your home to complete a questionnaire.
We hold local road shows across Thurrock. You can join our mailing list to be alerted about up and coming road shows.
You may wish to sign up to be invited to attend one-off information sessions/training events or conferences.
For residents who feel that they have more time to give we can offer a range of further opportunities:
There are active and recognised residents groups across Thurrock. These offer residents a choice of direct involvement at a local level. We can signpost you to your local group or help you to start up and develop a local group.
The panel monitors repairs and maintenance performance, areas for action and sets and reviews targets. It allows residents to express their views and develop policy proposals for repairs and maintenance. The panel meets every 2 months.
This group looks in detail at the strategy for involving tenants and leaseholders and works up ideas for letting more residents have a say, as well as ways to improve customer care. The group meets quarterly.
The forum represents and is open to all residents who live in Sheltered Housing in Thurrock. Meetings are held at sheltered complexes once every quarter.
The forum is open to all leaseholders. It provides an opportunity to come together and discuss issues of concern to them e.g. service charges. It allows the views of leaseholders to feed into Council strategy.
Community Forums operate across the borough. The independent forums include local tenants and leaseholders and wider stakeholders and have the opportunity to directly influence services in their area.
Recruitment and selection training is available to tenants wishing to take an active role in housing staff recruitment.
You can sign up to be a 'Mystery Shopper'. This involves a day's training and then carrying out test 'shops' to see how well our services are carried out.
We offer an opportunity for young people to come along and have their say. Ask your local office about 'Eat and Chat' in your area.
We offer a range of training opportunities for any tenant or leaseholder to come along to. Residents can sign up for just one or can be put on to a mailing list for all training opportunities.
We are supporting residents in agreeing local targets for their estate/area. You can sign up if you want to be involved in helping to set standards for your local area.
We hold regular estate inspections which are open to all tenants and leaseholders of the estate. You can register with your local office to be notified of any planned inspections.
We will be setting up local panels to check what you think about services local to you. You can sign up for the panels which will be held once a year.
When you have works completed by our staff or contractors we issue a satisfaction card. All you have to do is fill it in and return it to us!
When information is produced we believe the best opinion of its relevance and suitability is that of tenants. Sign up to be involved in 'tenant-proofing' housing leaflets and documents.
Have your say on local improvements. If you think your estate or block of flats could do with a bit of a face-lift, please contact your local office.
Your local office can help you with this and will provide feedback to you on what has happened as a result of your complaint.
The grid below lists some of the way you can have your say. You can commit to as little as 1 hour a year and not have to leave your home.
You don't have to! You can choose to have your say in the way that best suits you. This can be by telephone, post or e-mail or can be as simple as popping into your local office.
| What? | How long? | How often? |
|---|---|---|
| Focus Groups | 2 to 3 hour meeting | Once or twice a year |
| Telephone Surveys | At your own pace at home | Once or twice a year |
| Questionnaires and Surveys | At your own pace at home | Once or twice a year |
| Estate Inspections | 1 hour walkabout | Come along when you want to |
| Road Shows | Drop in | Come along when you want to |
| Conferences | A day or a half-day | Come along when you want to |
| Training | Half-day informal session | Come along when you want to |
| Mystery Shopping | 1 day training and 4 days 'shopping' | Five days a year |
| Repairs Panel | 2 hour meeting | Six times a year |
| Leaseholder Forum | 2 hour meeting | Six times a year |
| Residents Association | 1 to 2 hour meeting | Monthly |
| Consultation Panel | 2 to 3 hour meeting | Four to six times a year |
| Tenant Participation Working Group | 1 to 2 hour meeting | Four times a year |
| Sheltered Forum | 1 to 2 hour meeting | Four times a year |
| Community Forum | 1 to 2 hour meeting | Monthly |
| Estate Agreements | 1 to 2 hour meeting | Monthly |
Select the options below to show us how you would like to get involved.
