Tenants Organise Third Successful Conference
15 May 2007
Tenants of a South Birmingham housing association organised a third tenant's conference at the weekend which has become a successful annual event. Helped by landlords, Bournville Village Trust, the 'Tenants Together' Conference was held to involve and consult tenants on services as well as providing an opportunity to provide useful information and future plans.
A questionnaire presented feedback from tenants which showed that 93% of those who attended the conference said they thought it was important to be involved in the running of tenant services. 83% of those that attended the conference were satisfied or very satisfied with the overall services provided by the oldest housing association in the Midlands.
67% were very positive about the various ways that the Trust involves tenants which includes events, walk abouts, focus groups, local meetings, postal surveys and training sessions. 66% of tenants who came from Bournville, Shenley and Shropshire said they found the newsletter ‘Outlook’ very useful.
Tenants were also asked to state their priorities for spending Bournville Village Trust’s maintenance budget.
26% suggested that anti social behaviour was a major issue which needed addressing. An afternoon session used actors from Nelson Training to put on an interactive drama which covered anti social behaviour issues.
Other information sessions included a green workshop giving practical tips to help tenants play their part in helping to save the planet. Entertainment was provided by Samba drummers and an ‘It’s a knockout competition’ was held.
Zoey Stanton, Tenant Participation Officer for the Trust said: "Bournville Village Trust provides many opportunities for our tenants to participate in the management of our estates and to make decisions in relation to the housing services we supply. This initiative places us in the top twenty five percent of successful housing associations nationally. The results will now be analysed to enable the Trust to continually improve the services provided and to move the organisation forward."
The conference was supported by West Midlands Police, TPAS, TAROE, Mercian Housing Association, St Basils and the Central Midlands Energy Efficiency Centre.
