The government has made it clear: tenants must be at the heart of social housing reform for the next decade. But what does that really look like in action?

With a major boost in funding for new social and affordable homes, a long-term rent policy to support investment in existing stock, and a renewed focus on strong, resident-centred consumer regulation via the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) and the Housing Ombudsman, there’s real momentum.

But here’s the big question: are tenant voices truly being heard – and acted on – at a national, regional and local level?

The Housing Ombudsman has had a Resident Panel since 2021 and recently recruited 1,500 new members to serve for the next three years. The government also established the Social Housing Resident Panel with 250 members under the Regulator of Social Housing back in 2022. It initially focused on social housing quality reforms but was relaunched in October 2024 with a broader scope across all social housing policy.

Are they making a difference? In this event, we’ll hear directly from the Regulator and the Ombudsman about the influence of these panels, as well as from tenants who believe more change is still needed to ensure tenants voices are heard within government.

We’ll also explore the findings of a recent report – funded by Longleigh and G15+ and delivered by The Health Creation Alliance – which sets out 11 clear recommendations for making tenant voices central to shaping national housing policy.

With proactive consumer regulation now challenging landlords to refresh and strengthen resident engagement and the RSH constantly looking for evidence that outcomes have changed as a direct result of tenant engagement, this event will spotlight what’s working, share successes across the sector and encourage fresh thinking.

Join us to hear from a wide range of stakeholders and be part of a vital conversation about the future of the tenant voice – nationally, regionally and locally. Let’s learn, share and work together to drive real improvement for tenants everywhere.

This year’s conference will again be split into two parts: an afternoon event (12:00pm to 3:00pm) followed by an evening session (6:00pm to 8:00pm) to help ensure as many residents as possible can join us.

Full speaker line-up to be announced shortly.

Essential for:

• Residents
• Resident board members
• Housing directors
• Heads of housing management
• Resident engagement managers and teams
• Customer insight managers and teams
• Community engagement managers and teams
• Resident scrutiny groups or panel members
• Housing managers and officers.

Members of HQN Resident Network can bring 5 residents along to the event free of charge. 

One ticket covers both sessions but once booked, all delegates are free to attend both, or either of the sessions.  

12:00pm Welcome and introductions

• Jane Eyles, Associate, HQN

• Rob Gershon, Social Housing Tenant and Activist

12:10pm Regulating tenant engagement – the lessons so far 

• Damian Roche, Director, HQN

This session will offer valuable insight into the Regulator’s expectations for tenant engagement and how compliant housing providers are successfully meeting these standards. It will explore the importance of clear, accessible information in supporting meaningful engagement and the need for a well-defined strategy and approach to resident scrutiny. The speaker will also share practical perspectives on how landlords can demonstrate and evidence the outcomes of engagement, showing not just that tenants are being heard, but that their feedback is leading to real and measurable improvements in services and accountability.

12:45pm Tenants at the table – a new national tenant voice?

• Joseph De-Ville, Chair, A Voice for Tenants steering group

This session, led by Joseph De-Ville will explore the thinking behind commissioning the Tenants at the Table work — a project designed to strengthen how tenants’ voices influence national housing policy and landlord decision-making. Joseph will outline the report’s key recommendations, share how A Voice for Tenants is putting them into action, and explain new opportunities for tenants to get involved and help shape the next phase of this work.

1:20pm Lunch

2:00pm Reflections on the Housing Ombudsman resident panel   

• Sonji Nurse, Hexagon tenant and member of the HOS Resident Panel

• Mark Lawrence, Communications Manager, Housing Ombudsman Service

In this session Mark Lawrence will provide an insight into the HOS Resident Panel – how it was established, why it was created, and the vital role it plays in supporting the Housing Ombudsman’s work. The discussion will outline the journey from the panel’s beginnings to the current 2024–2027 cohort, exploring how its purpose and influence have evolved over time.

Attendees will also hear directly from Sonji Nurse about her experience as a panel member, what residents do within the panel and how their lived experience helps shape decisions, recommendations, and policy. The session will also highlight what skills and perspectives residents bring to the table, and why the panel’s work matters to both residents and housing staff across the sector.

2:30pm Reflections and discussion – break out rooms

3:00pm Close of afternoon session  

6:00pm Welcome and introductions to evening session

• Jane Eyles, Associate, HQN

• Rob Gershon, Social Housing Tenant and Activist

6:05pm Creating a national tenant voice for Wales

• Duncan Forbes, Chief Executive, Trivallis

• Emma Nicholas, Tenant Coordinator, National Independent Tenant Voice Cymru (NITVC)

Duncan Forbes and Emma Nicholas will introduce the National Independent Tenant Voice Cymru (NITVC). A tenant-led movement ensuring tenants’ voices shape housing policy and practice in Wales. It will explore why an independent tenant voice is needed, NITVC’s core principles and priorities, and how landlords and organisations can better listen to and work with residents to drive meaningful change.

6:35pm As simple as changing a lightbulb? A deep dive into landlord and tenant responsibilities

• Simon Phillips, Community Engagement Officer, Leeds Jewish Housing Association

• Niki Yoshua, Chair, Leeds Jewish Housing Association Resident Consultative Group

The session will focus on a ‘deep dive’ of landlord and tenant responsibilities carried out by LJHA’s Resident Consultative Group. In light of the Ombudsman Spotlight report on Communications and Vulnerabilities, how easy is it to distinguish between landlord and tenant responsibilities for carrying out repairs? The session will provide a useful case study of resident scrutiny and how it can influence the provision of an accessible, fair and equitable repairs service.

7:00pm The Social Housing Resident Panel and its activities

• Nici Hosfield, Head of Resident Experience and Programme Delivery, Social Housing Quality Programme, MHCLG

• Taslim Gbaja-Biamila, Resident Panel member

• James Olanipekan, Resident Panel member

This session, led by Nici Hosfield, will provide an update on the UK Government’s plans for a national tenant voice and recent engagement with tenant bodies following the Health Creation report published in April. Nici will share insights into the work and growing influence of the Social Housing Resident Panel, which since 2024 has expanded its remit beyond quality reforms to cover all areas of social housing policy.

The session will also highlight residents’ experiences of being part of the panel and how their input is shaping national policy and what this means for the future of tenant participation across the sector.

7:30pm Discussion groups  

8:00pm Close

Jane Eyles, Associate, HQN

Jane is an HQN Associate and has been a social housing resident, board member and consultant specialising in resident engagement since 1990. This means she is able to bring multiple perspectives into housing.

She has held senior positions such as Head of Housing for Brighton Housing Trust, Head of Engagement for LB Camden, Genesis and Hexagon and Tpas SE Regional Manager as well as 20 years consultancy including the development of resident led scrutiny.

Rob Gershon, Social Housing Tenant and Activist

Rob is a social housing tenant and activist. Rob was until recently a full-time carer. Following the Welfare Reform Act of 2012, wherein policy dictated Rob and his wife had a spare room for which they would be financially penalised, Rob began blogging about the reforms – then broader housing issues and policy.

Since then, Rob has been involved in the Social Housing Under Threat (SHOUT) campaign for social housing, has previously worked as the lead associate for HQN’s Residents’ Network, and was active with the group of tenants trying to design a ‘voice for tenants’ alongside the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, before ministerial inactivity and resistance brought an end to the endeavour.

Rob was one of the sixteen commissioners on Shelter’s “Vision For Social Housing” commission, a round look at what needs to change in the provision and regulation of social housing

after the Grenfell Tower Fire. This led to further quiet work assisting Grenfell United and Shelter to provide the housing ministry advice to try and drive reform through the Social Housing Regulation Act. Rob was also part of the advisory group working with Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s project alongside the Nationwide Foundation and the Frameworks Institute to look at ways of redefining how people talk about housing and social housing, in an attempt to inform public debate and drive policy change in an area which has arguably not produced the number of social rented homes the country needs. Rob’s opinions on housing issues and policy from a tenant’s point of view could previously often be found on 24housing’s website before its untimely demise. His opinions now sometimes feature on the Housing Quality Network where he has recently re-engaged with the Residents’ Network.

Damian Roche, Director, HQN

Damian is one of HQN’s experts on the consumer standards. He has played a key role in our consultancy projects since the new regulatory framework began its journey into law and supported a wide range of organisations (local authorities, housing associations and ALMOs) with their self-assessments and improvement plans. His particular areas of expertise are in customer engagement and wider stakeholder engagement as well as governance and complaints management.

Damian is a regular speaker at HQN events and recently devised and delivered a series of workshops to assist providers with their preparations for the new regulatory framework. He has developed toolkits for use in self-assessments, the latest covering the empty homes and lettings process and our condensed toolkit for the regulation of social housing.

As well as the learning and insight that Damian has gained through consultancy and project work Damian also has hands-on practical experience of delivering services. He has worked in the housing sector for more than 20 years, much of which has been at a senior/executive level, including eight years as director of customer experience for Accent Housing.

Joseph De-Ville, Tenant, Cornwall Housing

Joseph is a tenant of Cornwall Housing and has been in social housing for most of his life. He lives with my wife, her two children and one of his own children. Joseph is chair of a voice for tenants/tenants at the table. He is passionate about the tenant voice within housing and the change that needs to be made in the sector as a whole and sees that if you want to see change you need to be part of it. Doors have opened and closed for him on his journey but in most ways he has enjoyed every part of it.

Sonji Nurse, Hexagon tenant and member of the HOS Resident Panel

Sonji is an experienced strategic, change management and operational leader, whose prowess has consistently driven performance enhancement, delivering tangible results over more than two decades across the private, legal, non-profit and public sectors. Her strategic planning, change management acumen and unwavering commitment to community service have enabled her to navigate complex organisations and deliver tangible results and positive outcomes, leaving a lasting legacy of innovation and service excellence.

Beyond her professional achievements, Sonji’s dedication to her community is evident in her long-standing volunteer work. Sonji has also spent over a decade championing resident’s interests, contributing to the procurement of a new repairs contract that prioritises quality service delivery for all residents, ensuring that residents voices are represented. She’s a member of a number of groups, including the performance review and strategic core groups at her housing association. Their remit is to scrutinise the HA’s performance and make recommendations to the board so that service delivery is optimised. Sonji is a Housing Ombudsman Resident Panel Member.

Mark Lawrence, Communications Manager, Housing Ombudsman Service

Mark is the Communications Manager at the Housing Ombudsman Service, responsible for external communications and engagement. As part of this role, Mark manages the function that is responsible for the Resident Panel and other resident engagement. Mark has worked in the sector for over a decade, with other roles including HQN and 24housing magazine, where he was Editor for 3 years.

Emma Nicholas, Tenant Voice Advocate, Foundational Alliance Wales and Tenant Coordinator, National Independent Tenant Voice Cymru

Emma has been a social housing tenant for over 30 years and a tenant activist since 2013. She is the Tenants Voice Lead for the Foundational Economy Alliance Wales and Co-ordinator of National Independent Tenant Voice Cymru (NITVC). Her life experience includes living in care as a child and experiencing homelessness. She has worked in several roles including as area manager for 64 stores. She is a former chair of the Trivallis Tenant Advisory Panel (TAP). Her role included chairing and helping organise meetings and attending Trivallis board meetings, making sure that tenants had a say in all aspects of the business – from strategy to staff recruitment and PR.

Emma has played the leading role in establishing NITVC, a new initiative established in January 2025 to make sure the voices of tenants are heard at all levels in Wales.

Simon Phillips, Community Engagement Officer, Leeds Jewish Housing Association

Simon Phillips is Community Engagement Officer at Leeds Jewish Housing Association (LJHA), a minority-ethnic social housing provider providing homes predominantly for the Jewish community. The main focus of his role is to empower residents to have their voices heard on the services that matter to them. He oversees the Resident Engagement Strategy at LJHA. Simon is also the co-ordinator of the Yorkshire and Humber Scrutiny Network, a network of housing providers in the region.

Simon has a passion for the importance of resident engagement and has delivered inputs to staff and other local and national networks on the importance of accessible communication and information across all frontline housing services.

Niki Yoshua, Chair, Leeds Jewish Housing Association Resident Consultative Group

Niki is Chair of LJHA’s Resident Consultative Group, having been a member since its formation in 2020. She recently chaired the group’s deep dive on landlord and tenant responsibilities.

Nici Hosfield, Head of Resident Experience and Programme Delivery, Social Housing Quality Programme, MHCLG

Nici is currently leading on implementation of the Social Housing Quality Programme within MHCLG. She is a policy professional with a background in social research and has worked in a number of government departments, leading policy and delivery projects relating to commercial broadcasting, the sustainability of public interest journalism, equality and discrimination law, policing and open data. She has worked closely with regulatory bodies including the Regulator of Social Housing, Ofcom, the Competition and Markets Authority and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Taslim Gbaja-Biamila, Resident Panel member

Taslim has a background in Social Welfare Law and brings a wealth of experience from a range of roles within the housing sector, across both private practice and public service. In his current role with a local authority, he works on issues relating to environmental health, environmental crime, and anti-social behaviour, ensuring that communities remain safe, clean, and well-supported under the relevant legislation.

Passionate about giving back, Taslim is deeply involved in his local community. He currently serves as a Parish Councillor and was a former Non-Executive Director at Housing Solutions, where he championed positive changes and helped improve the lives of residents.

James Olanipekan, Resident Panel member

Reverend James Olanipekun has lived in Poplar, London since 1990. He was once a member of Tower Hamlets Council’s overview and scrutiny committee, a trustee of Tower Hamlets Street Pastors, Raine’s Foundation Trust, and Christ Apostolic Church. He is also a past vice-chair of Poplar housing and regeneration community association board in East London and is the current chair of one of the estate boards in Poplar Harca stock. Reverend James Olanipekun was a pioneer member of the Housing and Diversity Network London Region steering board. He is a founding member of the National Housing Federation’ s initiative called Tenant Advisory Panel, He sits on the Regulator of Social Housing Residents Panel.

Reverend James Olanipekun is a trained teacher and an author of six published books on Christian topics. He has been a volunteer pastor for over twenty years for a diverse congregation and was a recipient of the 2015 LBTH Civic Award for Outstanding Services to the community. Reverend James Olanipekun is happily married to Jummy and blessed with children who are also involved in the community positively.