Why consultation is crucial to making resident engagement work
Resident engagement is the key to a successful landlord-contractor partnership, say L&Q and Morgan Sindall Property Services
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Too often, conversations in social housing focus on key performance indicators and compliance. But if we’re honest, the most meaningful change begins in a quieter space when we actively listen to residents.
By involving residents in topics from building design to aftercare, housing associations can become more accountable and responsive, helping communities and the social housing sector more widely.
At Morgan Sindall Property Services, we believe meaningful engagement should be at the heart of all that we do, rather than an afterthought. It’s a relationship and, like any relationship, it’s built on trust: the kind that forms when people feel respected, involved and heard long before a surveyor steps on site.
The sector is shifting. The Social Housing (Regulation) Act and the updated consumer standards are rightly raising expectations. But they’re really catching up with what residents have long been asking for: a voice that shapes decisions, not just responds to them.
Involving residents is not just about responding to a changing policy landscape; genuine engagement requires deeper structures and a cultural shift from delivery to co-design.
It’s about understanding resident priorities, experiences, concerns and expertise before any decision is made; working with residents to learn from complaints; and empowering them to drive improvements in the areas where we know we can be better.
In this context, the partnership between housing associations, local authorities and their contractors becomes pivotal. When we work in sync, aligned around transparency, communication and shared accountability, we see stronger outcomes for residents and better value for the organisations we serve.
I’ve seen this in action at resident forums, where ideas are exchanged over tea and biscuits, and in project meetings, where local insight changes how we phase major works. When residents are part of the process, delivery improves. Expectations are clearer. Complaints drop. Trust builds.
While the quality of works matters, a resident who feels included, valued and engaged is how you improve services and standards, build stronger communities and make more informed decisions.
Mark Whittam, regional managing director, Morgan Sindall Property Services
Case study: Morgan Sindall Property Services and L&Q
Housing associations and their contractor partners should never take a one-size-fits-all approach to resident engagement – not if they want to be successful at it, says Olivia McRoe, head of resident engagement at Morgan Sindall Property Services, a repairs and maintenance firm working in the social housing sector.
“Good resident engagement starts with understanding each resident. We try to do that by having really clear communication [with each householder], as well as managing their expectations from the outset. It’s about involving them every single step of the way,” she says.
In 2023, Morgan Sindall Property Services signed a 15-year contract to deliver the major works investment programme for housing association L&Q. This includes providing estate and environmental improvements, planned mechanical and engineering works, and internal works for residents, such as kitchen and bathroom replacements.
“Say [Morgan Sindall Property Services is working on] a kitchen for 10 days. Residents want to know who’s turning up tomorrow, what’s going to happen and how it’s going to happen,” says Paula Botha, head of delivery at L&Q.
Communication and complaints-handling
Communication takes place in a variety of ways: via residents’ consultation meetings (in person or online), social media, text, email, letter or good old-fashioned door-knocking.
“We use every platform we can,” says Ms McRoe. “We do have a digital platform, which is fantastic and streamlines [everything] for all stakeholders.”
“Sometimes things do go wrong. It’s how we respond [that matters],” says Ms Botha.
Handling complaints in the right way is a priority, says Ms Botha. L&Q has “invested in additional staff, training and other resources, prioritising efficiency and good communication, and embedded learning from complaints in our process”.
In numbers
15 years
Length of Morgan Sindall Property Services’ contract to deliver L&Q’s major works investment programme
55%
Reduction in the number of complaints L&Q managed at any one time between April 2024 and March 2025
In addition, L&Q runs volunteering opportunities for residents to get involved in shaping services.
Efficient use of digital technology helps to streamline operations. “We have internal systems that allow us to track [progress], and we use SharePoint to share information with contractors,” says Ms Botha.
It’s about connecting the right people at the right time, she says. “Instead of a chain of six people getting the same message [that they don’t need to see], let’s get the two people who need to [see it] to speak to each other.”
This approach seems to be working. In its tenant satisfaction measures performance report 2025, L&Q noted that it had “reduced the number of complaints we’re managing at any one time by almost 55% between April 2024 and March 2025, meaning that we can respond to new complaints more quickly”.
“From the first year of [Morgan Sindall Property Services and L&Q] working together to now, the [key performance indicator] percentages have got better and better,” says Ms Botha.
“One of the things that warms my heart is the emails we receive, where people take the time to say: ‘Thank you so much for what you’ve done.’ People are more likely to complain if something’s gone wrong, but not to send an email or a message to say thank you. We are getting more and more of those messages,” she says.
Residents are more likely to trust landlords and contractors that listen to their concerns and act on feedback. However, when they go above and beyond, it takes engagement to a whole new level.
Ms McRoe remembers the Morgan Sindall Property Services team coming to the aid of an L&Q resident in Tottenham, north London.
“She had four children and no oven. Our RLO [resident liaison officer] spoke to our social value team to ask: ‘What can we do?’ We managed to donate her a new oven and gave her some decorating vouchers, too. That’s resident engagement to me. We have a duty of care to people. It’s so important that we don’t just walk away [where] we can help.”
Ms McRoe says Morgan Sindall Property Services RLOs will spend extra time with residents who are feeling lonely and isolated. “RLOs are recruited because they’re caring people. That is key to resident engagement: getting the right people in to do this job.”
All partners have to be a good fit and share the same goals. Ms Botha believes that’s why the relationship between L&Q and Morgan Sindall Property Services has been successful.
“We embrace the same values and behaviours. We all try to have the same expectations of our staff within L&Q and Morgan Sindall Property Services, so that everyone is on the same page. That makes a big difference.”
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