Empowering Communities Annual Report 2022-2023

I’m pleased to present the fifth annual report for our social enterprise, Empowering Communities

Empowering Communities is the trading subsidiary of Supporting Communities, an independent charitable organisation that has worked for more than 40 years to equip tenants and communities in Northern Ireland with the means to have a voice in their housing and other local services

Established in 2017, Empowering Communities works with housing providers, large and small, who want to enhance their tenant engagement and implement effective tenant participation practices

During the past few years, Empowering Communities has made significant strides towards establishing itself as the ‘go-to’ tenant participation expert for housing associations across Northern Ireland and in the Republic of Ireland

We have a proven track record of effective tenant/community engagement, delivered by an

experienced, highly skilled and dedicated staff team.

This year we have begun work on a significant milestone for us; the first All-Ireland Tenant Engagement Conference

The conference will be held in June 2023 and will be the first of its kind on this island, establishing us as leaders in this space and changing the conversation around tenant empowerment

Our theme continues to be #NextLevelTP as we help housing providers embrace the idea of continuous improvement in tenant participation

I hope you enjoy this brief report highlighting our accomplishments for the 2022-2023 year as we prepare to take our own work to the next level at the upcoming conference,

Paul Armstrong, Chair, Empowering Communities Board

NUMBERS & STATISTICS quick glance

With the addition of the Woodvale & Shankill Community Housing Association, our membership grew this year to twentyone housing providers

We delivered training to a total of 352 participants across the island of Ireland and earned a 99% satisfaction rate Thirty-two of these participants achieved an OCN NI qualification with us

We continued to build on last year ’ s successful rollout of the Tenant Participation Accreditation scheme, awarding Ark Housing with recognition at the bronze level. The award recognises landlords that demonstrate excellence in tenant participation and provides an indepth assessment of engagement practices and activities.

We continued to consult with housing providers on key pieces of work, including ongoing regular staff support sessions, three tenant participation strategies, one major mystery shopping exercise, and several independent reviews of Stage 2 complaints

This year we also began work on our first All-Ireland Tenant Engagement Conference, which will be held in June 2023

21 member organisations

99% training satisfaction rate

352 participants received training

32 gained an OCN qualification

1 TP Accreditation awarded

“ThestaffatEmpoweringCommunitiesare alwayscontactableandeagertoprovide assistance.Fantasticcommunication,customer service,andindustryknowledge.”

our members' network

The Tenant Participation Practitioners' Network provides an opportunity for staff involved in tenant engagement work to come together to share good practice

The group meets quarterly, and the membership’s needs drive their agenda

This year, the network has had presentations from the Housing Regulation Branch, and The Housing Agency Ireland Members have shared their methods for engaging tenants, and we

-memberfeedback

have provided training on setting up residents groups, and reporting to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland

The group also shares resources and materials online in an exclusive members only section of our tpsupport org website

CONFERENCE PLANNING

A significant piece of work for us this year was planning for the first All-Ireland Tenant Engagement Conference to be held in June 2023

This event will be the first of its kind and will bring together housing providers, policy makers and active tenants from all over Ireland to discuss ways we can take tenant participation to the next level

Our staff team has been working hard to pull together a terrific lineup of speakers and to promote the conference to our key audiences

Empowering Communities is leading the way in this important discussion about what is next for tenant engagement and how we can work together to ensure it is a core part of any housing provision

“TPPNmeetingsprovide asupportnetworkof like-mindedpeople andasoundingboard torunthingspast.”

Ark Housing TP ACCREDITATION

Ark has become the second housing association in Northern Ireland to achieve the Tenant Participation Standards Accreditation from Supporting Communities

The TP Standards are ten criteria for tenant involvement that an organisation must meet to become accredited Accreditation is awarded at three levels based on the Scottish model and adapted for Northern Ireland by Supporting Communities

We led a robust assessment ofArk’s tenant participation work to date,

Fermanagh Trust Training

highlighting good practice and making suggestions for improvement in areas

An independent panel then individually rated the standards against a set of competencies before collectively discussing their findings and awarding an overall rating of Bronze Level 2 Well done to everyone at Ark Housing!

NEW PARTNERSHIPS

This year, we formed a new partnership with the Fermanagh Trust, an independent communitybased foundation which supports local communities and groups across County Fermanagh and its hinterlands

We provided them with OCNaccredited training in Community Capacity Building (Levels 1&2) as part of their Investing in Community Leadership Programme Twenty-six learners from groups all over Fermanagh gained a qualification

OCNLevel2graduatesfromtheInvestinginCommunityLeadership ProgrammewithcoursetutorKarlaTurnerfromSupportingCommunities

THANK YOU TO OUR MEMBERS FOR YOUR SUPPORT

AlphaHousing(NI)Ltd

ApexHousingAssociation

ArbourHousingAssociation

ArkHousingAssociation

ChoiceHousing

CircleVHA

ClanmilHousingAssociation

CluidHousing

ConnswaterHomes

CraigowenHousing Association

ExternHomes

FoldIrelandHousing AssociationIreland

GroveCommunityHousing Association

HabintegHousingAssociation

NBHousing

NewingtonHousing Association

RadiusHousingAssociation

RuralHousingAssociation

StMatthewsHousing Association

TuathHousingAssociation

Woodvale&Shankill

CommunityHousing Association