Support for the CSP

We receive support from an Independent Mentor, Jayne Boote, who assists us when we carry out reviews, making sure we can ask the right questions, get the right information, to have the greatest impact.

Jayne has many years of experience working with tenant scrutiny groups and we appreciate her support.

Jayne says “Stockport Homes have always had a commitment that the CSP should have independent support to enable them to undertake effective scrutiny. This commitment has enabled the CSP to choose and scope topics for review, select appropriate scrutiny methods and produce a report independently of Stockport Homes. My role is to equip the CSP with the tools they need to undertake effective scrutinies”

The Governance and Scrutiny Team at Stockport Homes support us with the arrangements for the Panel.

Our aim

The biggest part of our work is carrying out Service Reviews. This is where we take a detailed look at services and how customers experience those services. Where it is needed, we make recommendations about where we think Stockport Homes should consider making changes or improvements. Some of these will have positive short-term results for customers, others might take longer to lead to changes in how services are delivered.

Once we have completed a Service Review, our report is given to the Service Manager to enable the service to formulate an action plan on how they intend to respond to our recommendations and provide us with a timescale on implementation. We see this part of the process as vital in developing our relationship with the service and allowing us to monitor the changes made. We then report our findings and recommendations directly to the Board of Stockport Homes and the Service Manager informs the Board of the action plan.

Each review provides a great learning process for both the CSP members and for staff at Stockport Homes, and the scrutiny process evolves with each review.

Every year, the CSP aims to complete at least two reviews of Stockport Homes’ services and over the last year, we’ve been to achieve that. The services we reviewed are:

• Homechoice Service – How easy it is to apply for a home

• Damp, mould and condensation - How effective SHG are in responding to reports of damp and mould.