Making your voices heard
Juliana Crowe, Chair of Customer Experience Challenge and Assurance Panel
Hello and welcome to Stonewater’s Customer Annual Review for 2022-23.
2022-23 has certainly been another very challenging year for all of us, and now more than ever, we’ve needed our customers to work with us to make sure that we keep improving.
The cost-of-living crisis has put a huge strain on everyone, and it’s only right that we should be making sure we get value for money for the things we pay for.
Housing Associations like Stonewater play an incredibly important role in helping a huge range of people find a safe and secure place to call home. Throughout this report, you’ll see the impact of what we do in helping to change lives, create homes and support communities to thrive.
But we’re also very aware of the added scrutiny that housing associations like Stonewater are under at the moment. In the media, and on social media, there have been several high-profile stories where customers have been let down by their landlords, and we understand how this can make our customers feel.
Working with the Housing Ombudsman Service and the Regulator for Social Housing, we’re making sure that standards are met and that when we find out that something has gone wrong, we’re committed to put it right.
That’s why we in the Customer Experience Challenge and Assurance Panel (CX CAP) – a team of Stonewater customers, board members, and Stonewater senior leaders – have been making sure that your voices are being heard.
Getting involved
I’ve been delighted to see so many customers kindly lending their time to help improve Stonewater.
The fantastic work of our Scrutiny Panel, Ageing Well Board, Community Champions and Customer Complaints Panel has really shone this year, and the valuable insight of the people on these groups has made a real difference.
Add to that the vital feedback and insight that we’ve gathered through consultations, customer surveys, feedback and events, and it’s clear that we’ve come a long way in making sure your views are being heard.
But we also know that we can‘t stop now, and I’m looking forward to seeing how we build on the success we’ve had in these areas as we move forward.
Your stories
Another thing which I’ve found both interesting and insightful is how many more customer stories we’ve been hearing.
These stories, some of which you’ll see in this review, are a really powerful and impactful way for Stonewater to understand more about the real lives of our customers so that we can have a clearer picture of what we need to do to serve them well.
I’ve really enjoyed listening to what customers have to say, and I make sure that I carry these stories with me during my work as Chair of CX CAP.
The strength of what Stonewater does relies heavily on the voices of our customers, so if there’s something you need to say, or something you want to do to improve your community for you and your neighbours, make sure you tell us. If it matters to you, then it matters to us.
There’s lots of ways to get involved, and I urge anyone who can to join us as we keep up the good work that is changing things for the better every day.
If you’re interested, send an email to customer.engagement@stonewater.org and our team can tell you more.