Every repair starts with a conversation. But it is the decisions made during that conversation that determine what happens next. Effective triage is the gateway to a successful repairs service. It ensures the repair is correctly diagnosed, prioritised, routed to the right team and process, and that operatives arrive with the information, materials and equipment needed to resolve the problem first time.

Getting repairs diagnostics and triage right has never been more important. Awaab’s Law, tighter consumer regulation and increased scrutiny from the Housing Ombudsman and the Regulator of Social Housing mean frontline staff are expected to make informed, evidence-based decisions from the very first contact.

Good triage is about far more than logging a repair. It means asking the right questions, identifying the true nature of the problem, recognising vulnerabilities and health and safety risks, assessing urgency, selecting the correct workstream, keeping accurate records and ensuring everyone involved has the information they need to act quickly and appropriately.

This highly practical course is designed for everyone at the front end of the repairs service. Through photographs, diagrams, real-life examples and interactive exercises, delegates will develop the confidence and technical understanding to diagnose repairs accurately and make consistent, high-quality triage decisions that improve outcomes for residents and organisations alike.

By the end of the course delegates will be able to:

• Ask the right questions to accurately diagnose repairs and make confident triage decisions
• Assess risk, urgency and household circumstances to determine the correct response
• Assign the correct priority and route repairs through the appropriate work process
• Recognise vulnerabilities, safeguarding concerns and situations requiring an enhanced response
• Provide contractors with complete and accurate information to maximise first-time fixes
• Reduce repeat visits, failed appointments, unnecessary follow-up calls and avoidable costs
• Know when repairs should be escalated to managers or referred to specialist teams
• Understand the requirements of Awaab’s Law, consumer regulation and Housing Ombudsman expectations.

Topics include:

• What good repairs triage looks like and why it is fundamental to an effective repairs service
• Asking the right questions to gather the information needed to make sound triage decisions
• Diagnosing common repairs across the main building trades using practical examples, photographs and diagrams
• Assessing urgency, risk and priority, including vulnerabilities and health and safety considerations
• Selecting the correct workstream, operative and response
• Recording information that supports effective triage and creates a robust audit trail
• Working effectively with contractors, operatives and internal teams to achieve first-time resolution
• Learning from common triage failures and identifying practical ways to improve decision-making
• Meeting regulatory expectations and understanding the consequences of poor diagnostics and ineffective triage.

Who should attend?

Ideal for everyone involved in the repairs journey, particularly:

• Customer service and contact centre advisers
• Repairs call handlers
• Repairs and maintenance managers
• Housing officers
• Estate services teams
• Repairs contractors and supervisors
• Customer inspectors
• Anyone responsible for diagnosing, prioritising or triaging repairs

Nancy Witham has more than 30 years experience within the Social Housing Sector. She delivers innovative, engaging interactive training to operational staff in Repairs & Maintenance, Neighbourhood, Customer Service and Business IT systems. Nancy’s style of training makes learning enjoyable and relevant and her training programmes receive consistently excellent feedback.

If you are unable to attend an event or public training course, please let us know in writing (email is fine) at least 48 hours before. Please email [email protected] Otherwise, a cancellation fee of £60 plus VAT will be chargeable. If you are using a package place to attend and do not inform us within the agreed time frame, then a place will be taken to cover your non-attendance. Cancellations must be made in writing, and will be acknowledged by HQN Limited.