Waverley Housing – Doing Things Differently

We caught up with Craig Macdougall Tenant and Community Engagement Assistant at Waverley Housing recently to find out his thoughts on why TP needs to change, what Waverley Housing are doing differently and his takeaways from the recent TPAS Annual Conference.

 

 

A new addition to the team, Craig shared his passion about why we all need to think differently about our approach to TP.

 

“As a new addition to TP, what I am observing are housing and community organisations doing TP in a certain way because they have always done it, even if it doesn’t work.  This is resulting in fallen numbers attending events, and only being able to attract older tenants who have always come along.   As a sector, TP needs an overhaul.  We need to make our actions worthwhile so that tenants get something out if it.  My background is sales so previously I’ve been focused on getting results and making impacts.  We need to consider the hook that gets people involved in our activities and do things differently.

 

We recently ran a Soup and a Silver Screen event where we invited tenants to come along to watch a movie and have a bowl of soup.  We had a fantastic turnout, and everyone got involved in the discussions, while meeting neighbours and new friends. As part of the day we carried out a rent review, this gave us a much increased feedback (compared to holding a meeting simply to review rents) and honest opinions, as the tenants were relaxed while involved in something they enjoyed.”

 

Young People in TP

One of the biggest challenges facing TP is getting younger people involved.  Waverley Housing have approached this subject differently and, rather than approaching high school children, they have decided to go into Primary Schools.  Craig said, “By working with primary school kids, we not only engage the kids but the parents as well.  Using the working well week in school we went to talk to kids of all ages from P1 – P7 about what it means to be a tenant and how they will be in charge of their own home.  We’ve also been involved in school Spring Fairs where we meet the parents.  By going to the schools, it is easier to talk to both the kids and parents.  They are going somewhere they are familiar with, with no stigma so they feel comfortable talking to us about what they want from their tenancy.”

 

Tenant Engagement Schemes

Craig highlighted that he was really enjoying his role.  He highlighted that it was totally different to previous roles he had worked in, and he loved the fact that he could see how his work could make a huge different to his local communities.  “We are one of 3 social housing providers in the Borders which has strong, close-knit communities. That provides an opportunity for us to get to know our tenants well and understand what they need.  A few schemes we delivered last year – Christmas hampers to those on low income and Warming Well for older people struggling to pay their gas and electricity – really made a difference to our local communities.    We’re now looking at a scheme called ‘Making Memories’ funded through the SBC Family Holiday fund where we will send families on trips that they wouldn’t have been able to afford themselves.

 

I know that any flyers or reports we send our tenants end up in the bin.  We’re doing things differently, so these schemes seem to be hitting the mark!”

 

What did you take-away from the TPAS Annual Conference

“The conference was excellent.  Being new into the sector, I didn’t really know what to expect, but I was overwhelmed with the professionalism of the conference, coupled with the fact that it really was great fun!   I loved the buzz and the determination of individuals across the whole of Scotland to really make a difference.  I expected that there would be a lot of focus on tenant groups and RTOs but was really surprised that the focus is more on individuals.  The conference is a fantastic mix of tenants and officers from large and small housing associations, so it was great to learn from others in the sector doing similar roles.”

 

“I am excited about making a difference to our tenants and local communities and the fact that I am approaching this as a non-housing person lets me bring my ideas and learnings to the table.”

 

Find out more about Waverley Housing at www.waverley-housing.co.uk