Success, Satisfaction and Scrutiny:
the Resident Engagement Toolkit
Involve residents in procurement
and complaints handling
Residents are acutely aware of the need
to deliver value for money. Given the
sums involved, getting them involved
in procurement is arguably the most
effective way of harnessing their skills.
Residents’ impact on procurement
accounted for the bulk of the £2.7 million
annual efficiency savings we identified
in Success, Satisfaction & Scrutiny.
Our recommendation is not just to look at the
actual selection of contractors, but to involve
residents in the whole ‘life cycle’ of a service:
zz Involve residents in the design of contract
specifications
zz Reserve places for residents in shortlisting
and selecting contractors
zz Help panels make evidence-based decisions
by supplying data collected through surveys,
customer contact records, mystery shopping
and post-inspections
zz Survey residents on the performance of
existing contracts and the specification of
new ones
zz Appoint resident monitors to carry
out inspections of repairs and home
improvements and feedback their findings
zz Get mystery shoppers to assess the
customer service delivered by contractors
zz Regularly involve residents in reviews of
contractors’ performance and expenditure.
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