Big changes to how the performance of social housing landlords is measured and regulated are on the way – with the focus on transforming the experience of people living in social housing.

The new consumer standards, the return of housing inspection, the Tenant Satisfaction Measures, the statutory Complaint Handling Code and the Decent Homes Review (to name just a few) are designed to improve the quality of homes while also give residents more influence in the way services are delivered and their landlord operates.

But how much do residents actually know about what’s happening and to what extent do they believe the changes will make a genuine difference to their daily lives?

This year’s virtual conference will take a practical look at the upcoming changes and what they mean in reality – with the focus very much on the resident perspective.

We’ll also look at the different ways organisations are evolving to embrace the upcoming changes, the methods they are using to communicate with residents, and explore why traditional approaches to engagement and scrutiny may no longer be fit for purpose.

The Residents’ Network annual conference is the place for residents and housing professionals to come together and discuss the key issues facing the sector. This year’s virtual event is a great opportunity to take practical learning back to your organisation and keep residents informed of what’s happening in the housing sector. We look forward to seeing you there.

Full details will follow shortly.

10.30 Welcome and introductions

• • Rob Gershon, Social Housing Tenant and Activist

  • Donna Cezair, Worthing Homes

10.40 The changing regulatory landscape and what it means for residents

• • Angela Holden, Assistant Director, Regulator of Social Housing

11.10 Regulator Q&A

11.30 The year in complaints – key trends, latest spotlight investigations and a look ahead

• • Anthea Chilton, Sector Learning and Development Lead, Housing Ombudsman Service

12.00 Ombudsman Q&A

12.15 Break

12.30 Putting power in the hands of residents and communities: introducing Eastlight Community Homes’ approach to resident engagement and community empowerment

• • Lisa Harper, Community Empowerment Officer and Resident, Eastlight Community Homes

  • Jessica Taylor, Community Entrepreneur, All In and Director, Trusted

  • James Green, Director of Social Innovation, Eastlight Community Homes

13.30 Lunch

14.00 Co-designing resident consultations: How to increase meaningful resident engagement through co-creation?

• • Andreas Pattichis, Design Director, Partner, Hellon Ltd

  • Elisa Facondo, Lead Service Designer, Hellon Ltd

14.45 Exploring the work of the Social Housing Quality Residents Panel

• • Marcella Hague, Head of Social Housing Quality Resident Panel, DLUHC

15.05 Why we created the role of Chief Tenant Officer

• • James Francis, Chief Executive, Saffron Housing Trust

15.30 Closing remarks

Book five resident places free of charge.

Only available to members of HQN’s Residents’ Network when booking a member of staff on the event.

To claim your free places, email the name and email address of all delegates to [email protected]

Angela Holden, Assistant Director, Regulator of Social Housing

Angela Holden is the Assistant Director of Consumer Regulation at the Regulator of Social Housing. She is responsible for managing the Regulator’s current reactive consumer regulation function and supporting in the implementation of the Social Housing White Paper.

Anthea Chilton, Sector Learning and Development Lead, Housing Ombudsman Service

Anthea Chilton is the Sector Learning and Development Lead at the Housing Ombudsman Service. Anthea joined the service in September and has over 10 years experience in various Learning and Development roles, including working for the UK Health Security Agency in the Emergency Preparedness Resilience and Response Training Team.

Anthea works in the Quality, Engagement and Development (QED) Department which provide insight into service provision from themes and key trends in complaints, such as spotlight investigations, to enable sector learning and a positive complaints culture.

Anthea is part of the team developing the Housing Ombudsman Service’ Centre for Learning (CfL). The CfL shares learning from complaints to encourage positive complaint handling across the sector.

Andreas Pattichis, Design Director, Partner, Hellon Ltd

Andreas is a Nordic Designer with a Mediterranean twist. Award-winning Design Leader with 10+ years’ experience in the world of Strategic Design and Change Management. As a dual national trilingual, he has a fascination with different cultures and ways of thinking and doing. Andreas has steered his approach within Design to be truly participatory and empowering to all parties involved. He is especially recognised for encouraging sustainable practices to be considered for both business and environment, with a particular passion towards under-represented communities.

Elisa Facondo, Lead Service Designer, Hellon Ltd

Elisa is a Lead Service Designer at Hellon, with a passion for infusing human-centered design into the DNA of organisations. Originally hailing from Milan, she made London her home a decade ago, leveraging her Master’s Degree in Design Thinking to catalyse innovation across diverse industries – spanning banking, FMCG, digital and spatial innovation, public sector, and global charities. Her core motivation lies in shaping organisations towards human-centricity, reimagining services, products, and experiences throughout every layer of an enterprise.

Marcella Hague, Head of Social Housing Quality Resident Panel, DLUHC

Marcella has been in the Civil Service for 10 years, formally at the Department for Education and now leads the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities’ Resident Panel which brings together 250 residents to share their views to help shape social housing quality policy thinking.

Rob Gershon, Social Housing Tenant and Activist

Rob is a social housing tenant and activist and 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 the housing ministry advice to try and drive reform through the social housing regulation bill.

Rob is 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.

James Francis, Chief Executive Officer, Saffron Housing Trust Ltd

James was appointed CEO at Saffron in early 2019. Saffron provides over 6,500 homes and related services across Norfolk and Suffolk and operates a wholly owned commercial development company, Crocus Homes.  Since that time, the reputation of Saffron across multiple stakeholders has improved considerably, including restoring it’s G1 regulatory grade for governance.  Today, Saffron has clear long-term strategies, partnerships, and resources in place to become an organisation where tenants want to live and great people want to work and flourish, including a new model for tenant and community influence.

During his time with Saffron, James has contributed to the work Build East, a collaboration of fifteen housing associations across the East of England, focusing the work of the partnership on stakeholder connection since becoming Chair in January 2022.  James started working life in a fruit packing factory and held a variety of jobs before entering the world of finance and qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 2004.  Prior to joining Saffron, James spent a near-decade in Board-level Finance Director roles with larger g15 housing associations.  James has completed successful terms as a Trustee with The Benjamin Foundation and Chair of the Primary School and Gymnastics Club attended by Chloe and Evie, his two teenage daughters.  James loves being active and has raised over £10,000 for charities by running marathons and completing other challenges.

Lisa Harper, Community Empowerment Officer and Resident, Eastlight Community Homes

Jessica Taylor, Community Entrepreneur, All In and Director, Trusted

James Green, Director of Social Innovation, Eastlight Community Homes

Donna Cezair, Worthing Homes