A Spotlight report on noise complaints has led to well over half of social landlords implementing changes to the way they deal with such cases, the Housing Ombudsman has found.
In a new evaluation report, published as a follow up, it was found that 60% of landlords who responded have self-assessed against the Spotlight’s recommendations, and are implementing an action plan.
According to the ombudsman service, this demonstrates the “positive impact” these Spotlight reports can have, and the “encouraging responsiveness” of the sector. Among the report’s findings are key case studies, including a case where a landlord responded effectively to a resident that was suffering with PTSD from a former neighbour dispute.
The initial Spotlight report, Time to be Heard, published in October 2022, made various recommendations around voids, neighbourhood management, and knowledge and information management.
Richard Blakeway, the Housing Ombudsman, said: “It is positive to see that when landlords engage with the recommendations from our Spotlight reports, effective policy and practice can come from it. This will undoubtedly benefit residents and extend fairness, enabling landlords to deliver more responsive services and potentially prevent complaints arising.”
A third of landlords told the ombudsman that since the report, they have made improvements and changes to their void standard, and that the benefits of this are already being seen.
Amongst the void improvements mentioned by landlords were installation of soft door-closure mechanisms, door pads and/or anti-vibration washing machine mats, and reviewing previous reports of noise from the property and conducting noise insulation checks.
Furthermore, 45% of landlords informed the ombudsman they now have, or are planning, a neighbourhood management policy following the report. A further 38% of landlords said they have reviewed their existing policies and procedures, and 22% of landlords now have, or are planning, a separate noise policy.
This was a key recommendation from the original report, with many landlords treating all noise cases as ASB, which was leading to poor responses.
The report also makes clear the impact this issue can have on residents’ mental health. The ombudsman says it is “encouraging” to see some improvements made in this area, with specific training and pilots with Mind part of the changes.
Other improvements landlords have made following the Spotlight report are:
- Introducing timescales for responding to noise complaints
- Ensuring these are monitored and that they form the basis of any service level agreements with third parties
- Changing the mediation approach to ‘conversation, not confrontation’
- Triaging noise complaints to ascertain whether they fall under household noise or ASB
- Linking to our Spotlight report on attitudes, respect and rights were changes to language such as removal of “perpetrator” and “incidents”
A small number told the ombudsman they would make changes to their knowledge and information management around noise complaints. However, the evaluation also identified areas for further action, including on knowledge and information management, and offering a visible presence in communities, with only 16% of landlords saying they had increased home visits or their presence on estates despite this being a key concern of many residents.
Blakeway added:“As part of our plans for the coming years, we have been explicit that we want to improve landlords’ local complaint handling so that fewer cases require our intervention. Engaging with these reports is an important way of doing that, and we have seen in some instances where landlords have provided evidence to the Regulator of Social Housing using the self-assessments from our Spotlight reports as proof of learning and progress.
“However, it is important to note that this is just a snapshot of landlords and there is still more work to do. Noise can be a huge issue for the residents that experience it and can cause severe mental health issues, impacting their whole lives. Landlords should be empathetic of this when cases come into them.”
Responding to the publication of the ombudsman’s report, minister for social housing, Baroness Scott said: “Everyone should be able to live without their lives being blighted by noise, and [these] findings show positive steps being taken by social landlords to improve residents’ quality of life in response to the Housing Ombudsman’s recommendations.
“Our landmark Social Housing Regulation Act is building on the Housing Ombudsman’s important work to make sure social landlords continue to improve the way they handle complaints. This includes a new competence and conduct standard that will arm social housing staff with the skills, experience and knowledge to deliver the excellent service that tenants want and need.”
Image: Tero Vesalainen/Shutterstock
Read next: Orbit residents are crucial partners in digital tech research
Are you a social housing professional? Sign up for a FREE MEMBERSHIP to upload news stories, post job vacancies, and connect with colleagues on our secure social feed.
