The Tenant Satisfaction Measures Two Years On
An Analysis of How the Measures have Changed the UK Social Housing Sector
The Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) were introduced by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) in England on April 1, 2023. As explained by the affordable housing provider CHP, the Measures focus on six key themes ‘to assess how well landlords are doing in providing good quality homes and services:’ overall satisfaction, keeping properties in good repair, maintaining building safety, respectful and helpful engagement, effective handling of complaints, and responsible neighbourhood management.
They were designed to have a positive impact on the social housing sector for both tenants and landlords, with a number of key goals for both parties.
For tenants, the TSMs enhance landlord’s accountability through transparent data they can use ‘to scrutinise their landlord’s performance and give landlords insight about where they can improve,’ explains the government website. The TSMs should subsequently lead to improved service by landlords, as they provide an opportunity to understand areas where services aren’t meeting expectations, and where there are issues regarding the building or property’s safety and maintenance, thus improving living standards.
For landlords, the collection and recording of the TSMs data should lead to a culture of continuous improvement, as troublesome areas of their service are identified sooner, allowing for swift action and planning. The TSMs data, as publicly shared, also gives social landlords the opportunities to compare their scores against their peers’.
What Are the Findings So Far from the TSMs?
Since the implementation of the TSMs, various housing providers in England have reported on their performance, offering insights into areas of improvement and ongoing challenges. Here we will break down different areas of the TSMs and what social housing landlords have reported., as shared by Housemark.
Overall Satisfaction
According to Housemark, ‘Overall tenant satisfaction has decreased by around five percentage points since 2020 to 79% today.’ They go on to reveal that, ‘Shared owners report even lower satisfaction at 56%.’
Tenant Engagement
Unfortunately, only 64% of residents feel their landlord listens to their views and acts upon them.
Building Safety
Landlords are performing well on safety measures, with a median score of 100% across five key areas. However, in contrast, only 83% of tenants feel their home is safe.
Repairs and Maintenance
Housemark reports that, ‘85% of non-emergency repairs are completed on time against landlord targets, but the average days to complete repairs has increased by 40% to around 14 days since 2020.’ Housemark also found that 8 in every 10 tenants say they are satisfied with repairs, while 76% are satisfied with the time taken to complete the most recent repair.’
In terms of property maintenance, Housemark reports that, ‘Only 68% of tenants say their landlord keeps communal areas clean and well-maintained.’
Complaint Handling
Approximately 80% of tenants receive a response to complaints within the 10-day requirement, but only 56% are satisfied with the handling of their complaints.
How are Social Landlords Responding to TSMs findings?
Overall, the implementation of TSMs has led to increased transparency and accountability in the social housing sector, benefiting both tenants and landlords by highlighting areas for service improvement and fostering a more responsive housing environment.
Here we will look at some examples of measures being taken to address TSMs scores and findings.
Overall Satisfaction
Affordable housing provider CHP identified a lack of satisfaction from tenants in regard to their handling of reports anti-social behaviour (ASB), and have acted upon these findings: ‘This year we’ve reviewed our policies for handling ASB and neighbourhood concerns, listening to customers and their feedback, and have developed an improvement action plan to strengthen our approach to preventing, managing, and tackling ASB.’
Safety and Maintenance
Housing association L&Q Group reported that only 61% of their residents were satisfied with the overall L&Q repairs service over the 12 months prior to the survey and that an even lower 56% were satisfied with the time taken to complete the most recent repair. Furthermore, only 58% were satisfied that their home was well-maintained. This brought about an action plan: ‘We’ve launched a project to improve how we deliver repairs, so you get a faster, better quality service which offers you more choice – since April 2023, we’ve reduced the average amount of time it takes us to deliver day-to-day repairs by 12 days.’ They go on to explain that, ‘As part of this, we’re also fixing 76% of day-to-day repairs the first time (beating our target of 75%). We expect this figure to continue to rise over the coming year – we’re already completing 83% of smaller jobs on our first visit.’
In terms of their property maintenance, they reported, ‘Our long-term major works programme has already delivered more than 8,000 improvements to bathrooms, kitchens, windows, roofs and other building elements, and is on track to deliver at least 5,000 more this year.’
Operational Improvements
In their 2023/24 survey, Southway Housing Trust identified some key areas for improvement based on tenant feedback. They have since relaunched their MySouthway Repairs portal for 24/7 repair bookings, increased staffing in their Customer Hub and Repairs teams to reduce response times, and make the statement to their residents: ‘We’re professionalising our Housing Management Service, with an emphasis on better customer care, being out in the community, dealing with problems quickly at the source, and speaking to you on the doorstep and in the neighbourhood.’
Southway Housing Trust has also invested in energy efficiency upgrades for over a quarter of their 6,000 homes and are enhancing their damp and mould repair processes to address root causes more effectively.
Respectful and Helpful Tenant Engagement
Following their TSMs results, Wolverhampton Homes initiated several projects to improve tenant satisfaction. These include 'Down Your Way' activities such as community clean-ups, 'Days of Action' involving volunteering support, and the 'See It, Report It' campaign to ensure tenant safety and support. They also introduced the 'My Account' app for digital service access and a Concierge Service to enhance estate management. A particular focus has been placed on maintaining communal areas, with Wolverhampton Homes making the statement: ‘To make improvements, we have prioritised both internal and external communal areas, given the importance the maintenance and appearance these have on our individual tenants, residents and the wider community.’ They have also increased staff presence and collaboration with the City of Wolverhampton Council to tackle waste and fly-tipping issues.
Responsible Neighbourhood Management
Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTVH)’s 2023/24 TSMs results highlighted a disparity in satisfaction between renters and homeowners. In response, they established a dedicated team for shared owners and leaseholders, separate from renter services. They also formed a Service Charge Collaboration Group to address homeownership-specific concerns. To improve communication and service efficiency, MTVH invested in a new Customer Relationship Management system. They remain committed to enhancing their complaints handling culture and ensuring residents' voices influence service delivery. MTVH state: ‘We are committed to listening to our customers and providing meaningful opportunities for them to help shape and improve the way our services are delivered.’
Conclusion
The introduction of TSMs has provided valuable insights into tenant satisfaction and landlord performance. While there are areas of strength, such as building safety compliance, challenges remain in tenant engagement, repairs, and complaint handling. Continuous efforts are needed to address these issues and enhance the overall tenant experience, which appear to be at the forefront of many social housing provider’s plans going forward.
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