Ways to get involved

Residents often arrange fun days on their estate, with funding provided via the Resident Participation team. Fun days can be a good way to bring people together and encourage new residents to participate in existing groups and activities. If your estate has an existing resident group, they can organise a fun day on behalf of the estate. If not, contact the RP team and they can help you with organising.

The Resident Participation team provides funding via the Community Development Fund for a wide range of community projects, including employment and training initiatives, youth activities, gardening projects and sports and fitness classes. Project proposals can be put forward by any Hackney Housing residents.

There are currently over 50 gardening groups on Hackney housing estates. Community gardens can help the local wildlife thrive and give people the chance to grow their own food, helping their communities become more environmentally sustainable. Maintaining the gardens can also be a great way for residents to relieve stress and be more physically active.

Our Housing Services are developing a Resident Scrutiny Panel. The panel ensures people living in our homes can help shape and improve the services we provide.

This supports our commitment to ensure the voices of our residents are at the heart of everything we do.

Overview of resident-led housing scrutiny

Resident-led housing scrutiny is the detailed review of the service delivery, process or policy of our Housing Services. It is about residents looking at the services they receive and how they are delivered and evaluating them to see if they are as good as they can be.

This could involve:

• looking at service standards, policies and procedures
• interviewing other residents, staff and people using the specific service
• visiting locations where we provide the service
• reviewing cost, performance, and satisfaction information and how they compare to other social housing providers
• carrying out ‘mystery shopping’ exercises
• looking at how other housing organisations provide similar services, and what we can learn from them

You act as a critical friend – highlighting what works well and what could be improved. The most important thing is that it is undertaken by residents who:

• act independently to us
• reflect their experience as a resident and consider how it affects others
• make a positive impact on the services that are most important to residents living in our homes

If you become a panel member then you agree to attend panel meetings four times a year as well as take part in scrutiny reviews – each review requires a time commitment of at least 10 hours. The panel meetings are often in the evening.

Skills needed to be a panel member

You do not need to have any previous experience with scrutiny panels. We are looking for residents who have:

• passion and a commitment to improving Housing Services
• an ability to work well in a team
• strong communication skills

Every new member of the panel receives full training to become an effective scrutineer.

Benefits of being a panel member

Housing residents that participate get:

• the chance to help shape the future delivery of our Housing Services
• an opportunity to learn new skills and meet new people
• £50 Love to Shop voucher for each review completed and out of pocket expenses
• access to laptops and wifi if required, and other support to meet any individual needs

Panel member selection process

The recruitment process is by application followed by an information session. The information session is to allow people to get a better idea of what is involved in being a panel member.

You need to live in a Hackney Council home to apply.

Apply to join the panel

If you want to apply for the panel, call the Resident Participation Team on 020 8356 7850 or email get.involved@hackney.gov.uk to request an application pack.

Tenants and Residents Associations (TRAs) bring together residents in a defined area, usually an estate or block(s), to represent the interests of residents and bring about improvements in services. They adopt a formal constitution and are recognised by Hackney Council, meaning they will be formally consulted on major issues which could affect their homes or estate, and are eligible for funding to help with their running costs. Many TRAs also organise social events and run community projects which help to bring residents together. Housing Officers attend TRA meetings on a quarterly basis to update on housing issues in their area and get feedback on existing services.

You can get involved by attending your local TRA meetings. To find out if your estate has a TRA, contact get.involved@hackney.gov.uk.

If there are no residents group in your area, we can help you set one up. Contact us to find out more.

The Tenants and Residents Association (TRA) Forum is an informal space where TRA officers can connect, share ideas and discuss best practices for running a TRA and organising community events.

The forum meets 3 times a year, with topics chosen by TRAs.

To find out when the next meeting is, email get.involved@hackney.gov.uk or call the Resident Participation Team on 020 8356 7850.

Neighbourhood Panels consider housing issues and wider community concerns raised by TRAs and residents in their area. They provide a forum for residents of any tenure to influence housing policy and decision-making, and provide an opportunity for residents to examine housing performance and suggest improvements. The Panels are resident-led  and are open to any Hackney housing resident. The six Panels broadly match neighbourhood  housing management areas:  

• Clapton
• Central
• Homerton
• Shoreditch
• Stamford Hill
• Stoke Newington

RLG is the key strategic residents’ forum which influences housing policy and service decisions and scrutinises housing performance. The group is consulted on new strategies and changes to service delivery which will affect housing residents, ensuring that the interests of residents  are considered in strategic decision-making. The group’s meetings are attended by senior housing management staff and the Cabinet Member for Housing Services. The group is made up of 2 representatives from each Neighbourhood Area  Panel and 7 independent residents, as well as representatives from housing’s specialist interest forums.  

The Housing Youth Forum gives young people the chance to have their voice heard on housing issues impacting them and to share their ideas to help improve the service and improve the lives of young people in their local area.

Members of the forum have the opportunity to speak to housing services senior managers and influence any potential decisions being made affecting them.

As well as being able to have their say on how their estate and homes are managed and in shaping housing services for young people across Hackney, those taking part in the forum will also receive vouchers for participating, a hot meal, and free training.

Since its launch young people on the panel have already:

• met with council officers and attended meetings of Tenant Resident Association to represent the views of the borough’s young people
• assessed applications and awarded grants to local voluntary groups
• been trained to be able to inspect projects to ensure they are delivering youth friendly services 
• seen members of the panel gain first aid qualifications
• organised social activities including theatre trips and meals

Anyone interested in joining the forum or finding out more information should contact the Council’s Youth & Community Engagement Officer, Kelly Edwards, on kelly.edwards@hackney.gov.uk or by text on 07510 378514.

We support Over 50s Groups made up of residents from Hackney estates. The groups provide a range of activities and events for older people, including arts and crafts, bingo, community meals and digital skills training sessions.   

TMOs are organisations set up by tenants and leaseholders to manage their estate or block. Each TMO has a legal contract with the Council known as a management agreement. Each TMO will elect to self-manage some services which could include  cleaning, repairs, rent collection or other housing  management services. Each TMO has its own  Board which is chaired by a resident and includes  both residents and independent Board members.  Hackney currently has nine TMOs which range in  size from 114 to over 1,100 homes.

Hackney Matters is an online citizens’ panel of local people. The panel is a group of residents who are regularly asked for their views. We collect feedback and insight from the members on a range of topics, including housing and non-housing issues. There are just over 1000 members signed up to the panel, with 286 being Council tenants, leaseholders and homeowners. As part of this strategy, we will aim to increase the number of housing residents who participate in the panel.

For more information, visit Hackney Matters.