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The Housing Ombudsman has recruited 600 individuals to serve on its new resident panel following significant interest from participants.
The ombudsman said it had initially intended to have 100 members but the level of interest was so high that the panel has been expanded to 600 people.
Members will advise the complaints arbitration service on how it works. There will be two full meetings each year which will focus on key areas of work, such as the ombudsman’s corporate plan and business plan.
The panel membership represents all nine regions of England, spans ages from 16 to over 65 and has a strong social housing demographic split, the ombudsman said.
A new, tougher Housing Ombudsman scheme came into effect in September, with changes including the advent of complaint-handling failure orders.
Housing ombudsman Richard Blakeway said: “I’m absolutely delighted to appoint our first resident panel after an overwhelming response from residents. The panel will provide valuable insight and feedback on our plans to grow and develop the ombudsman, alongside our extensive engagement with landlords.
“This a crucial year as we will be publishing our next three-year plan in the summer. By increasing the scale of the resident panel we will be able to hear a much stronger resident voice within these plans, together with developing our approach to promoting awareness and learning from complaints.”
Two induction meetings will be held this month for all members of the panel who have been appointed for three years.
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