We understand that clear communication and easy-to-understand processes are important to our customers when reporting a repair.
We invited seven customers to a presentation explaining what happens when a repair is reported, what service they can expect and the challenges that could impact the process.
Following the presentation, we asked if the communication of the process and category descriptions were clear and easy to understand, and all customers provided valuable feedback and recommendations.
What happened next?
A new repairs service webpage for the Selwood Housing website has been created to provide a clear explanation for our repairs service, details of how a repair is categorised and response times. Five customers have reviewed the webpage and changes made in accordance with their feedback.
‘You said, we did’
| You said | We did |
|---|---|
| The repair categories, emergency and priority were easy to understand. However, the term ‘appointable’ is confusing and did not have a specific meaning. | We have replaced the term ‘appointable’ with ‘routine’ and included examples of repair types for all three categories. |
| More clarification is needed around the terms ‘non-emergency’ and ‘complex’. Also, an explanation around repairs that requires more than one trade operative. | An explanation for a non-emergency repair and a more complex repair, including timeframes can be found on the repairs service webpage. |
| Honest communication is needed when there is going to be an extended waiting time for a repair and the reason for the delay i.e., waiting for materials, weather etc. | The planning team closely monitor all repairs and will contact the customers directly if appointments are severely delayed, explaining the reasons. Issues that can cause a delay in repairs can also be found on the new webpage. |
| Do you consider customer circumstances when making appointments? | Repairs appointments are booked in with the customer, we aim to accommodate requests for a more convenient date and time slot. |
| Do have all the info about customers’ households and health etc? Could there be a customer area on the website where we can update our information, track repairs etc? |
These will be part of longer-term equality & diversity and customer portal projects, but customers can advise us of vulnerabilities or health issues at the point of reporting repair, rather than us holding information that may go out of date. |
| How are you communicating this with customers who are not online? | Customers who are not able to access the website and digital version of the customer update will have a printed copy posted directly to them. We will include details of our repair service, tips and guidance. |
| Could a printed copy of the repair service be displayed on communal area noticeboards? | All customers should receive a printed copy of the customer update or digital version, so it was felt that it is not needed on notice boards. There are plans to review how we communicate information in blocks, unfortunately this will not be delivered in the next 12 months. |
| Will you have an easy-read version? | We do not provide easy-read versions of customer information as these are time consuming to produce and require expertise that we do not have within the organisation. We try to use plain and concise language to make our information accessible to as many customers as possible. A large print version of our monthly customer update is available on request. |
Get in touch
If you have any questions about the programme, or to find out about ways to get involved, contact our involvement team.
Email: makeadifference@selwoodhousing.com
Tel: 01225 715715
