Working Groups and Forums
Working Groups are groups of around 15-20 tenants who meet with council officers to look at particular areas of our housing services. Forums are groups of tenants who meet to discuss particular issues that affect them.
Working groups meet at least four times a year and meetings usually last for around two hours. We currently have working groups set up to look at the following areas:
- Repairs and Improvements - this group meets monthly. Members look at the way SKDC carries out repairs to council properties and also how we do improvements such as new kitchens and bathrooms
- Anti-social behaviour - this group meets quarterly and looks at anti-social behaviour and the RESPECT agenda
- Estate management - this group meets quarterly. Members look at the caretaking service we provide to keep the estates tidy and to clean internal communal areas in our general needs properties (that is, not supported housing). The group also looks at estate inspections and other estate management issues
- Equality and Diversity - this group meets monthly. Members look at how we can ensure that Tenancy Services is meeting the needs of all its customers, regardless of disability, age, gender, religion or belief, ethnicity or sexual orientation. The group makes recommendations for service improvements to senior managers.
Forums will usually have at least 15 members, and may have a lot more than this. Forums will usually meet quarterly for around two hours. We have forums set up for the following groups of tenants:
- Tenants who live in supported housing - the Supported Housing Forum meets quarterly to look at the issues that affect tenants who live in supported housing. These include, for example, the scheme manager and helpline services, disabled aids and adaptations, communal facilities and the Supporting People Framework
- Young tenants - Winter 2009. We are still looking at how this group will fit into our existing structures. We plan to set up a group for tenants aged 17 to 35, to look at the particular issues that affect young tenants. These could include how young tenants manage their tenancies and how the housing services we provide cater for young single people and families
- Leaseholders - this group meets six monthly to look at issues that affect leaseholders. These include service charges, major repairs and improvements and the services SKDC provides to leaseholders.
If you want any more information on any of these groups or forums, or would like to find out about how to join a group, please contact us.
