Agenda Item No. 4

THE VALE OF GLAMORGAN COUNCIL

HOMES AND SAFE COMMUNITIES SCRUTINY COMMITTEE: 11 OCTOBER 2017

REFERENCE FROM CABINET: 9 OCTOBER 2017

C97     TENANT ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY (HBS) (SCRUTINY COMMITTEE – HOMES AND SAFE COMMUNITIES) -

Approval was sought for a draft Tenant Engagement Strategy for public housing as a working document for further consultation.

In 2007 the Welsh Government set out a requirement for all social landlords to develop their own local Tenant Participation Strategies. The first Vale Strategy was published in 2008 and led to an improvement in tenant participation; albeit from a fairly low base. Two years later, the Vale published a further strategy with more ambitious objectives designed to drive further improvements which also included outcome focussed objectives for the first time.

It had been seven years since the last strategy was published and the current version aimed to pick up any gaps which had come to light and also incorporated feedback from more recent tenant consultation. A number of priority areas identified included: a need to involve a broader cross section of tenants; the need to develop the range of methods used to engage tenants (beyond the traditional tenants association type approach); the need to develop the capacity of tenants groups to play a bigger role; and lastly ensuring tenant views fed into the strategic decision making process, for example: shaping new services, developing new policies and deciding spending priorities.

The priorities informed the new strategy and the outcomes focus had been retained in order to maximise the impact of the actions and initiatives which had been identified.

This was a matter for Executive decision

Cabinet, having considered the report and all the issues and implications contained therein

RESOLVED –

(1)       T H A T the draft Tenant Engagement Strategy attached at Appendix 1 to the report be endorsed as a working document for further consultation.

(2)       T H A T the draft Tenant Engagement Strategy be referred to the Scrutiny Committee (Homes and Safe Communities) for consideration.

(3)       T H A T the draft Tenant Engagement Strategy be subject to a broader consultation with all Vale Council tenants and existing Residents' Boards.

(4)       T H A T the Tenant Engagement Strategy be referred back to Cabinet for finalising upon receiving the views of the Scrutiny Committee (Homes and Safe Communities) and feedback from the broader tenant consultation exercise.

Reasons for decisions

(1)       To ensure that tenant engagement was at the heart of the decision making process and a broad range of tenants had the opportunity to take part in a variety of different ways.

(2)       To provide an opportunity for Scrutiny to make any comments.

(3)       To give the wider tenant population an opportunity to comment and suggest changes to the draft strategy.

(4)       To agree the final Strategy document.

Attached as Appendix – Report to Cabinet –9 OCTOBER 2017