We maintain Housing Quality Network accreditation
Our repairs and maintenance service has retained its accreditation from the Housing Quality Network (HQN) following an annual assessment. The HQN scheme recognises housing providers that exceed good practice standards and offer a best-in-class service to customers.
The assessor noted the significant challenges we have faced during the coronavirus pandemic, and how our planners and trades teams have adapted to clear any backlog. They also recognised that we continue to set challenging targets, and that customer satisfaction remains high despite the disruption of the past two years. 92 percent of our repairs are currently being carried out as a first-time fix, which means no further visits are needed. This is an improvement from our assessment in 2020.
In its assessment the HQN commented on how we are not an organisation that ‘sit on their laurels’, and that we are continuing to develop our repairs and maintenance services. The assessor’s report also notes how we have been proactive in our response to the Social Housing White Paper. This includes involved customers in decision making through our repairs and planned maintenance group. The HQN were also impressed with the work we have done to incorporate electric vehicles into our fleet, and our plans to extend this further.
We were one of the first organisations to be awarded HQN accreditation in 2011. Every three years we are required to make a submission to renew our accreditation and retain the award. We gained accreditation for the fourth time in 2021. The HQN carries out an annual inspection to ensure organisations are maintaining their accreditation standards.
Gavin Page, Head of Operations said: “We are very proud to have maintained our HQN accreditation for another year. We are particularly proud to be recognised during a time when we’ve had to adapt our ways of working due to the pandemic. This is a testament to the consistent hard work of our management, trades, planners, and supply chain teams. It also confirms our dedication to providing a top-level maintenance service to our customers.”