Equality Outcomes Report 2011-2012: Appendix 1
Equality and Customer Service
Equality or Inclusion Aims / Issues to be Addressed / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Embedding equality and diversity in achieving customer service excellence.
Meeting the diverse needs of residents. / Organisation wide / Achieving the Customer Service Excellence Standard for providing customer focused housing services. Swan also achieved five compliance plus levels, demonstrating best practice.These were in the following areas:
- Reaching hard to reach and disadvantaged groups
- Consultation is integral toimprovement
- Insight on customers and service improvement
- Information is provided through a number of channels
- Interaction with wider communities.
David Thornton, Assessor said in his report:
‘You involve customers in decision making at all levels in your organisation. You therefore have a great insight into the needs and requirements of service users, including some of the most disadvantaged in society. You set challenging targets for customer satisfaction and continue to improve services as a result of analysing the experiences of those using your services.’
Homes that Meet Residents Needs
Equality or Inclusion Aims / Issues to be Addressed / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Meeting the needs of residents with a disability within the home, particularly amongst under represented communities. / Partnership Compliance
Axis / Providing aids and adaptations to residents with a disability.
The Aids and Adaptations Service has also been promoted in The Communicator, the local Exmouth and Bow Cross newsletters (which are translated into Bengali) and via the BAME (Black, Asian Minority Ethnic) Women’s Forum during 2011 - 2012. / The annual Aids and Adaptations Satisfaction Survey Report showed that satisfaction with the Aids and Adaptations Service remained high at 97% in 2011. However, this does represent a slight decrease of 3% in comparison to 2010. This decrease in satisfaction was largely due to the management of appointments, which is being addressed as part of a broader service improvement programme.
Recipients of the service reported that that the adaptations undertaken have made a significant improvement to their lives. This is seen as a positive equality outcome resulting from Swan’s commitment to supporting people with a disability to live independently in their homes.
Equality analysis of satisfaction levels was not possible in 2011. This is because the majority of respondents chose not to complete the equality monitoring section of the survey.
Helping residents who are older or who have a disability to decorate their homes. / Partnership Compliance / The Assisted Decorating Scheme where decoration is undertaken for residents who meet the criteria outlined in the Policy. / Swan recognises that our older residents and those in receipt of benefits associated to a disability are less likely to be able to undertake internal decorations themselves. Swan seeks to assist these residents through the Assisted Decorations Scheme.
25 Swan residents and 14 Forest Gate (Newham) residents have taken up the Assisted Decorations scheme so far during 2011-2012. This represents a 39% increase in take up in comparison to 2010-2011.
Helping older people and those with a disability to live independently in their homes. / Swan Care and Repair / The Care and Repair service offers a variety of services to enable people to live independently and stay in their homes.
The service assists customers with undertaking adaptations and repairs to their home, working in partnership with North and Mid Essex District Councils and Essex County Council Social Care Occupational Therapy team. / Between July 2011 and February 2012, customers provided the survey feedback below following work related to the Disabled Facilities Grant.
98% of customers felt that staff showed an understanding of their situation and were helpful, reliable, professional and competent.
93% of customers felt that upheaval to their life was minimised.
93% of customers said that they would not be able to complete the work without Swan Care and Repair.
98% of customers said they would recommend the service to others.
Increasing mobility options for Swan residents that need to move for employment opportunities. / Allocations and Lettings / The use of HomeKey.
Swan’s Allocation Policy provisions to enable lettings to be made to existing tenants for mobility reasons. Banding priority is given to transfer applicants when there is a need to move for employment opportunities / commitments as well as for under-occupation. / Since the launch of HomeKey, Swan’s on-line choice based lettings system in April 2010 the number of applicants registered on the transfer list has steadily risen. By November 2011 the figure had increased from 750 to over 1,000. The increase in transfer applications is in part due to the openness and transparency of HomeKey with tenants now being able to view all the properties that we have available for re-letting to another Swan tenant.
Prior to HomeKey applicants were only considered for a property in an area that they had pre-selected. This meant only 8% of transfers during 2009/10 were into a different borough from the one the person currently lived. Lets through HomeKey mean that over 30% of all transfers are now to a different borough from where the applicant currently lives. This shows how the use of HomeKey has helped to increase mobility for Swan residents.
Equality and Repairs
Equality or Inclusion Aims / Issues to be Addressed / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Ensuring that the repairs process is delivered in a way that is appropriate for Supported Housing residents. / Partnership Compliance
Axis
Supported Housing / Identification and training of a new Supported Housing Champion at the Axis Call Centre. / The Supported Housing Champion is able to provide additional support to both residents and Axis Staff to ensure that the repairs process is delivered in an appropriate way. This approach has been welcomed by residents, Axis staff and Supported Housing staff.
The Champion has also been able to increase awareness amongst Axis staff of the needs of Supported Housing residents.
Access to the repairs service. / Partnership Compliance
Axis / Analysis of access to the repairs service across equality groups. / To date access to repairs has been found to be reflective of the wider resident profile, indicating that there is equality in access to the repairs service.
Further equality analysis of access to the repairs service will be undertaken later in 2012.
Addressing disparities in satisfaction with therepairs service across equality groups. / Partnership Compliance
Axis
Resident Involvement and Community Development / Our annual satisfaction survey found that satisfaction with the repairs service was slightly lower amongst the Bangladeshi community.
This led Swan to undertake further work with our repairs partner Axis to investigate the reasons for differing levels of satisfaction. It was discovered that dissatisfaction was largely linked to communication difficulties, particularly for households where English was not their first language.
- Additional training was provided throughout 2011.
- The use of Language Line (a telephone interpretation service) was promoted.
- A recruitment campaign is underway for a Bengali / Slyheti speaking member of staff for the Axis call centre.
- Individual repairs issues have been followed up and resolved through the BAME Women’s Forum.
Participants of the BAME Women’s Forum have expressed satisfaction with the way that Swan has followed up and dealt with individual repairs issues through the Forum in 2011-2012.
Helping people to live independently in their homes by providing assistance with minor repairs and adaptations. / Swan Care and Repair / Handy person Service
Anyone can apply to use the service (not just Swan tenants) that lives in North or Mid Essex.
Services include:
- Changing light bulbs
- Fitting key safes
- Fitting grab rails
- Putting up curtains tracks or shelves
- Minor plumbing jobs
- Safety and security measures
76% said that the work undertaken had increased their peace of mind.
71% of customers said that the service had helped them to keep their independence.
48% of customers said they were better able to cope with their disability / ill health.
90% of customers felt that the service was good value for money.
Increasing Accessibility
Equality / Inclusion Issue / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Increasing information available about key services to diverse residents. / Housing London / Talk Sign Machines for residents were introduced in 2010 in London offices. In 2011 the signs were updated to include additional information. / The Talk Sign Machines have provided basic service information for residents in an audio format. Scripts are available in English, Bengali and Somali. Reports showing use of the machines indicate that they have been well used to access information.
Usage data obtained between March and June 2011 showed that there were fifty uses of the talk sign machines over a three month period. 60% were information requests in English, 26% in Bengali and 14% in Somali.
Increasing access to customer facing office areas and providing a high level of service to residents with disability related needs. / Housing London / Housing Essex / Mystery Shopping throughout 2011-2012. / Mystery shoppers have been briefed to look out for equality related factors when undertaking mystery shopping. In 2011 Swan also began using shoppers from another organisation - Gateway Housing Association.
The September 2011 Mystery Shopping Report demonstrated high levels ofsatisfaction with disability related scenarios / enquiries.
Increasing Representative Involvement
Equality / Inclusion Issue / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Increasing the involvement of young people / Resident Involvement and Community Development / Two Youth Forums in Vange and the Craylands estate were developed in Essex during 2010. Work undertaken in 2011-2012 has led to the development of more formal groups. Terms of Reference have been written and will be considered for approval in April 2012. / The Forums have begun to address the under representation of younger people in resident involvement structures. Work in 2011-2012 to make the Forums more formal has already increased their capacity for further involvement.
Increasing the involvement of BAME women in London, particularly from the Bangladeshi community. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / BAME Women’s Forum in London. / Positive feedbackhas been received from attendees who have found the sessions particularly useful for resolving individual and community issues.
Forum Members also held an Eid party in 2011 to encourage community involvement and participation in the Forum.
Despite offering capacity building support, there are not yet any Forum Members that feel able to join the Resident Consultative Committee (RCC). However, there is now a direct reporting link to both RCCs in London and Essex. This ensures that any concerns raised at the Forum are highlighted to RCC Members to assist them in their scrutiny function.
Providing capacity building opportunities to Resident Consultative Committee and Regional Committee Members to enable them to scrutinise our services from an equality perspective. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / Equality and diversity training was provided for Regional Committee Members and RCC Members in October 2011. This was designed to raise awareness of equality issues and assist participants in applying a scrutiny role to equality. / Positive feedback was received from participants who felt that it would assist them in their scrutiny role.
Increasing Social Inclusion and Building Community Cohesion
Equality or Inclusion Aims / Issues to be Addressed / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Increasing English Language skills for residents who speak another language.
Fostering integration, social inclusion and community cohesion. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) Classes held and promoted in London in partnership with the Limehouse Project. / 14 residents successfully completedthe ESOL Entry Level 1 course in 2011.Students were invited to a presentation day on 14th December 2011. The students were awarded a certificate in recognition of their success. Current students were also invited as guests.
Participants fed back that their improved English language skills had enabled them to be more independent and interact with others to a greater extent.
‘I took the ESOL Level 1 qualification provided by Swan. It has helped me to pass my citizenship test and to communicate better with other people in my area.’ - BAME Women’s Forum Participant, September 2011.
Building community cohesion and community spirit at estate level. / Resident Involvement and Community Development and other housing teams / A series of fun days have been held during the year in both Essex and London areas. / The fun days which have been either supported or delivered by Swan have provided successful community events for the diverse communities Swan serves.
These events have been particularly good for bringing people of different ages and ethnic and religious backgrounds together.
Positive feed back has been received from residents.
Creating positive activities for young people in the local community, increasing inclusion and building community cohesion. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / Football coaching sessions have continued in 2011 following positive feedback from young people and parents. The project covers the Craylands, Churchview and Five Links areas in Essex and the Bow Cross and Exmouth Estates in London.
Swan organised an inter estate 7-a-side football tournament on 22nd October 2011 for young people across the Basildon area. The event took place at Markhams Chase field with 60 young people from the estates of Craylands, Five Links, Churchview and NoakBridge taking part. West Ham officials were in attendance to officiate the tournament. / Created opportunities for young people to develop sports skills and participate in community sports activities.
Indirectly contributing to community cohesion.
Contributing to a holistic approach in tackling anti-social behaviour through the provision of diversion activities.
Promoting healthy and active lifestyles through community based activities.
Creating positive activities for children and young people in the local community, increasing inclusion and building community cohesion. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / The delivery of summer activities for children and young residents in London in 2011. / Created opportunities for local children and young people to participate in community activities.
Indirectly contributing to community cohesion.
Contributing to a holistic approach in tackling anti-social behaviour through the provision of diversion activities.
Promoting healthy and active lifestyles through community based activities.
Celebrating diversity and promoting community cohesion. / Resident Involvement and Community Development
Housing London
Housing Essex / Black History Month Celebrations 2011:
- BHM Lunch (for residents and staff)
- BHM Art Competition (for young residents)
- Promotion of BHM on web4residents, staff intranet, in Swan reception areas.
Supporting and encouraging residents to get involved with Swan and participate in or lead local projects. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / The Star in the Community Awards was held on 21st November 2011. / The Chair of the Bow Cross Board received an Inspirational Resident award for her work in the community and with Swan.
Supporting residents to lead a healthy and active lifestyle by providing accessible activities. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / Swan in partnership with the Bromley by Bow Centre and Social Action for Health has been successfully delivering a healthy living initiative for women called “My Weigh”. Weekly sessions are being held on the Exmouth Estate. / There is an average attendance of 25 residents at each session.
This provision is also appropriate for women that are not able to participate in mixed gender activities for religious or cultural reasons.
Supporting residents to develop and deliver activities and projects in their own communities, fostering social inclusion and community cohesion. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / The funding of local community projects and events through the Community Grant. / The Community Grant has helpedto overcome economic barriers to completing community initiatives or projects where Swan residents benefit from them. The Grant objectives and criteria mean that there are few restrictions on the types of projects that can be successful in obtaining a grant, whilst ensuring that the grant is used appropriately.
Increasing awareness and appreciation of equality and diversity amongst staff and residents. / Supported Housing
Housing Essex
Housing London / The delivery of a Diversity Day involving staff and residents, hosted by the Swan Foyer in March 2012. It had a particular focus on disability; however the Zero Tolerance to Hate Crime campaign was also promoted. / Positive feedback was received from both staff and residents. The activities helped them to better understand different disability needs and other equality issues.
Tackling Financial Exclusion
Equality or Inclusion Aims / Issues to be Addressed / Service Area(s) / Action or Activity / Equality / Inclusion Outcome(s)Supporting residents to claim the welfare benefits they are entitled to. / Benefits Advice Service / The ongoing provision of benefits advice and support. / In 2011/12:
- The Welfare Benefits Advice Service in Essexsecured £561,916 in benefits for residents who were entitled to benefits that they were not receiving.
- The Welfare Benefits Advice Service in London secured £454,318 in benefits for residents who were entitled to benefits that they were not receiving.
- 100% of respondents to the Welfare Benefits Advice Service Satisfaction Survey in Essex reported that they were either fairly or very satisfied with the support they received from the Welfare Benefits officer.
Targeting support at equality groups more likely to be in arrears or at risk of eviction. / Housing Essex / Housing London / An equality analysis of tenants in arrears or who have been evicted was completed again in 2011-2012, so that targeted action to support equality groups more likely to be in arrears could be planned. / The equality analysis demonstrated that there are currently no significant disparities between equality groups in terms of arrears and evictions.
Removing financial barriers to resident involvement. / Resident Involvement and Community Development / Continuing to reimburse expenses involved with resident involvement such as travel to meetings and child care in line with the Resident Expenses Policy.
Training opportunities are also provided free of charge. / Covering the expenses involved in attending meetings has enabled a broad range of residents to stay involved and participate in the scrutiny of Swan’s services.
Using the Financial Inclusion Strategy to tackle exclusion. / Housing Essex / Housing London / The Financial Inclusion Strategy was introduced in April 2010. A range of actionshave been put in place or continued as part of the Strategy. These included:
- Use of the benefits calculator assessment tool for new tenants and sign posting to the Benefits Advice Service and external agencies
- A Tenant Reward Scheme, which encourages tenants to keep their rent accounts clear
- Support for young people within Swan foyer schemes on maximising income, budgeting, money management and life skills
- Advice and support for residents around maximising income, budgeting, money management and life skills
- Financial awareness workshops.
The equality analysis of arrears undertaken in 2011 showed that there are no significant disparities between different equality groups.
A reduction in rent arrears shows that the Income Teams have been performing well, but also that the inclusion measures in the Strategy may having a positive impact. Arrears had decreased by a further 3.54% in Essex and 3.13% in London at the time of the Financial Strategy Review in November 2011.
Training and Skills