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A week in the life of... a community partner

What is it really like working from home in tenancy sustainment, while homeschooling and doing childcare? Kayleigh Dorricott, a community partner at housing association Radian, fills us in

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Kayleigh is having to balance work with looking after children, Fin and Ruby
Kayleigh is having to balance work with looking after children, Fin and Ruby
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A week in the life of Kayleigh Dorricott, a community partner at housing association @radiangroup – doing tenancy sustainment work from home while balancing home schooling and childcare #ukhousing

“It’s important they know we are here to support them,” says Kayleigh Dorricott, a community partner at @radiangroup, about doing tenancy sustainment work over the phone rather than face to face #ukhousing

Monday

I was joined by a 10-year-old and a three-year-old. The kids were up, dressed, had breakfast and I was ready too, in the hope that keeping to a routine might help us have a productive day.

My plan was to make all my phone calls to customers before my husband goes to work in the afternoon so that the kids can be kept out of earshot.

“My role is usually face-to-face, so to be able to fill someone with the same reassurance over the phone gave me a huge boost and I was so pleased this customer felt better once we had spoken”

By now the kids are used to the routine of me going to my makeshift office in the utility room and closing the door behind me. They have even started knocking before entering.

Our daily 9am call starts on Teams for all the community partners. It’s a time to ask any questions and get an overview of the day ahead.

Tuesday

Before adapting to working from home, a big part of my day would be visiting customers, but I now speak to them on the phone instead.

My first call was with a customer who had recently been in contact regarding some issues in the block they live in, so I had to prepare myself for a difficult conversation. I addressed her concerns and checked how she was feeling. Although slightly frosty at first, her attitude changed and she seemed reassured.

My role is usually face-to-face, so to be able to fill someone with the same reassurance over the phone gave me a huge boost and I was so pleased this customer felt better once we had spoken.


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Wednesday

Being stationed at home involves work and childcare duties, which I share with my husband.

I heard, “snack time, mummy!’’ and knew that was my cue to deliver supplies to the kids, who had been drawn to the arts and crafts I set up at the kitchen table. I left Fin to practise his keepy-ups and Ruby watching the vets programme she’s obsessed with.

Thursday

I followed up with a poorly customer I had visited in January. Despite being terminally ill, he arranged for his family to help clear his property and decorate two rooms.

Throughout the day I had ‘pings’ from my phone, which were from a Teams chat the communities team uses to touch base. Since we’ve been working from home, it’s been reassuring to know that my teammates are always on hand.

I had a call with a customer who started on our action plan and cleared their garden of rubbish. This filled me with happiness that even in these uncertain times and with a challenging medical condition, she was able to work with her family to achieve this.

Due to coronavirus, her husband is not working and they contacted the financial responsibility team to update their Universal Credit claim to reflect their change in circumstances and receive the support they deserve – another happy customer. It’s important they know we are here to support them.

Friday

Now is a great time for housekeeping. Going forward there will be changes to our patches, so I put together some case notes to help a new community partner with some of my more complex cases.

That was me done for the week. I heard the kids dancing in the lounge and it was time for me to join them.

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A week in the life series

A week in the life series

Our ‘A week in the life’ series features housing professionals talking through what they do in their job on a day-to-day basis.

Find out about the different challenges housing workers in a variety of roles face in a given week. 

We aim to feature staff from housing associations, ALMOs, local authorities and more.

Click here to nominate yourself or a colleague for inclusion

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