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Jenny OsbourneJenny Osbourne is Chief Executive at Tpas – the tenant engagement experts - and has been in this role since 2014. Her previous role was H ...more
After Grenfell, we need to hear tenants' voices
A new national panel of tenants would allow people who actually live in social housing to speak directly to decision makers, says Jenny Osbourne
Jenny OsbourneJenny Osbourne is Chief Executive at Tpas – the tenant engagement experts - and has been in this role since 2014. Her previous role was H ...more
This week saw a call from Tpas, along with three other organisations – the National Federation of Tenant Management Organisations, the Confederation of Co-operative Housing and TAROE – to Sajid Javid for discussions about establishing a new national panel for tenants.
“Now is the time to create a new vision for the future.”
Tpas’ reason for being part of this call is clear. We want to see tenants and communities having a respected and valued voice at the heart of policy making and to enable them, across England, to contribute their expertise and insight of their experiences direct to key decision makers.
For us, as a tenant and landlord body, that is a win-win for everyone; tenants, landlords, government but most importantly the communities in which we all live and work.
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The four national organisations, while distinct separate membership bodies with different objectives, have a long history of coming together when needed to work on issues that are important to tenants. This call for a new national body, in the wake of events at Grenfell Tower, is about recognising there have been attempts to create such a vehicle in the past but that now is the time to create a new vision for the future.
At Housing 2017 there was undoubtedly a renewed energy and commitment in the sector to ensure that social housing is a key part of the answer to solving the housing crisis.
I was encouraged too to see that engaging more with tenants and communities was also a welcome consistent topic of conversation.
The time is now to talk about how we do that better, not only organisationally and locally but nationally, too.
Tpas wants to see a strategic body that includes as wide a group of people as possible. This is not limited to these four organisations alone.
We have initiated this petitioning but it is now for the wider sector to contribute its thoughts on what it could look like. I am delighted we are already seeing support from a broad range of organisations in the sector; all of whom have a desire to ensure the legitimate concerns of tenants and leaseholders across all tenures have a voice that reaches the government on issues such as safety, engagement and regulation.
“Tenants are more diverse than ever and any new body must reflect that diversity and change.”
In my view, for a body to speak at the highest level, it must ensure it encompasses a range of rental types and experiences from across as much of England as possible. Today, tenants are more diverse than ever and any new body must reflect that diversity and change.
Tpas firmly believes in the value of partnership and positive working. As experts in engagement and a membership drawn from landlords and tenants, that is our whole ethos. By working together with trust and transparency, better decisions are made and services improved. We want to see this same ethos on a national level.
Tpas is proud that it works to create conversations that matter in the sector. This entreaty to the government for a national body to enable a strategic conversation with government on the national views of tenants and communities across England seems to me to be a sensible and pragmatic ask at this time.
Jenny Osbourne, chief executive, Tpas
