Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs)
The Regulator of Social Housing requires social landlords to carry out annual assessments of tenant satisfaction and publish the results along with key data regarding how their housing services and homes are managed. A set of tenant satisfaction measures (more commonly known as TSMs) have been produced to make the performance of landlords more visible to tenants and help them to hold their landlords to account.
There are 22 TSMs, some of which are measured directly by the council such as safety checks, and others which are measured by tenants voicing their views within a survey.
TSM Survey 2023-24
Ashford Borough Council conducted its Tenant Satisfaction Survey over a six week period from 21 August 2023 to 3 October 2023. The survey was conducted by The Learning Foundation (TLF) who conducted this survey using surveys being carried out by phone, web link and post. All tenants were encouraged to participate in the TSM survey.
The Learning Foundation also contacted Leaseholders of Ashford Borough Council to complete a leaseholder satisfaction survey across the same timeframe, with options to complete the survey via a web link or by post.
Data was collected across the survey period and all information collated across feedback from tenants and our management information and was submitted to the Regulator of Social Housing in June 2024. Our results have been published in accordance with guidance from the Regulator, which you can find details of below.
Management information TSMs
Management information covers a variety of areas from how many safety compliance checks we carry out on our properties, as well as how many repairs, complaints and cases of anti-social behaviour are raised with us.
A summary of these management figures can be seen below:
+ Building safety
- Proportion of homes for which all gas safety checks have been carried out - 100%
- Proportion of homes for which all required fire risk assessments have been carried out - 100%
- Proportion of homes for which all required asbestos management surveys or re-inspections have been carried out - 100%
- Proportion of homes for which all required legionella risk assessments have been carried out - 100%
- Proportion of homes for which all required communal passenger lift safety checks have been carried out - 100%
+ Anti-social behaviour
- Number of anti-social behaviour cases, opened per 1,000 homes - 8.6
- Number of anti-social behaviour cases that involve hate incidents opened per 1,000 homes - 0.2
+ Decent Homes Standard (DHS) and repairs*
- Proportion of homes that do not meet the Decent Homes Standard - 3.4%
- Proportion of non-emergency responsive repairs completed within the landlord's target timescale - 85.6%
- Proportion of emergency responsive repairs completed within the landlord's target timescale - 79.6%
+ Complaints
- Number of stage one complaints received per 1,000 homes - 55
- Number of stage two complaints received per 1,000 homes - 8
- Proportion of stage one complaints responded to within the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code timescales - 73.9%
- Proportion of stage two complaints responded to within the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code timescales - 78.6%
Tenant perception survey TSMs
The TSM survey asks tenants for their perception on subjects such as property repairs, maintaining building safety, effective complaints handling, respectful and helpful tenant engagement, and responsible neighbourhood management. This direct feedback from tenants ensures that we understand what we are doing well and where improvements might need to be made.
Data collected is covered by privacy and data protection laws and any tenants that took part could opt to be anonymous with their responses, or provide their details attached to feedback.
+ Perception survey results
Firstly, we would like to say a big thank you to all those who took part in our 2023/4 satisfaction survey. Hearing first hand experiences and honest feedback about our homes and services really does help us to look at ways we can improve.
This year's survey was launched on 21 August 2023 and ran for a six-week period and was carried out by our research partner TLF on our behalf. All tenants were given the opportunity to respond either via post, telephone or online via an email link. We received 1,041 responses, representing 20% of all our properties. Weighting of the data was not required to represent our tenant population, as weighting by age group and tenure type made less than 1% difference to the overall satisfaction score. We can be very confident (95%) that the data closely represents how satisfied most tenants would be even if they did not respond to the survey. No incentives were offered to tenants to complete the survey.
Below is an overview of how satisfied our tenants are with Ashford Borough Council (ABC) across the 12 TSMs:
- 63.2% of tenants are satisfied with the service provided by ABC
- 64.7% are satisfied with the overall repairs service from ABC (only those that have raised a repair within the past 12 months answered this)
- 59.0% are satisfied with the time taken to complete their most recent repair
- 65.8% are satisfied that ABC provides a home that is well maintained
- 72.0% are satisfied that ABC provides a home that is safe
- 48.6% are satisfied that ABC listens to their views and acts upon them
- 59.7% are satisfied that ABC keeps them informed about things that matter to them
- 67.0% are satisfied with ABC treating them fairly and with respect
- 27.0% are satisfied with ABC's approach to complaints handling (only those that have raised a complaint in the past 12 months answered this)
- 61.6% are satisfied with ABC keeping communal areas clean and well maintained (only those that live in a property with communal areas inside/outside answered this)
- 52.4% are satisfied that ABC makes a positive contribution to their neighbourhood
- 44.6% are satisfied with ABC's approach to handling anti-social behaviour
For those that would like to see the data in a more visual way our Annual Tenant Satisfaction Survey Results [pdf] 213KB is available to download.
Or download our Annual Tenant Satisfaction Survey Results one page summary document [pdf] 219KB.
A copy of the questions that we asked in the survey can be viewed by downloading our Tenant Satisfaction Survey Questionnaire [pdf] 85KB.
Survey Action Plan
Every survey comment and response was examined and analysed to formulate an action plan to address the issues raised to improve our housing services, and as a result tenant's satisfaction with our service. We focused on areas which tenants are least satisfied with. Please find some of our key actions and improvements we have implemented as a result of your feedback:
- Introduce complaint feedback surveys sent to tenants following complaint closures. Use this feedback to make improvements to our complaints service. Report these results and service improvements to our tenants and other stakeholders.
- All housing staff have received training on complaint handling to better improve our service, and make it easier for tenants to make complaints.
- Monitor our complaint responses to meet designated timescale as set by the Ombudsman. All housing complaints are monitored centrally and response timescales have improved significantly.
- Form and facilitate a tenant scrutiny panel along with other formal and informal ways to get involved in our housing services. You can now register your interest in joining our Tenant Scrutiny Panel and variety of other involvement activities on our website.
- Investigate whether additional staff resources dedicated to housing complaints is required. The investigation found this was required and as such the new role which has been filled.
- Antisocial Behaviour training was given to all our housing officers to improve their knowledge and allow them to more effectively manage these cases.
- Resources and tools available for tenants need to be more heavily promoted so tenants know how to report Antisocial Behaviour.
- Introduce Antisocial Behaviour feedback surveys to be sent to tenants following case closures. Use this feedback to make improvements to our complaints service. Report these results and service improvements to our tenants and other stakeholders.
- Improve customer service levels and availability of staff to receive repairs enquiries. Staff recruited to increase availability, with call answer statistics improving.
- Repairs staff to attend activities involving tenants, such as the regular 'Estate Walkabouts' to share knowledge, speak with tenants and resolve or raise repairs concerns as required.
- Improve the rate of our repairs staff achieving a 'First time Fix'. Repairs staff are now fixing more repairs on their first visit than ever before thanks to the training provided to call handlers and repairs staff and logistical improvements in our service.
- Roll out our new Tenant Engagement Strategy to inform our tenants of the involvement opportunities that are already available to them or will be made available in the near future.
- Promote tenant involvement in our regular 'Estate Walkabouts'. You can now sign up to attend our Walkabouts, find out more on our tenant engagement page.
Get in touch
If you would like to get in touch regarding the survey or chat through the results in more detail please call Tenant Engagement on 01233 330573 or email us on tenant.contact@ashford.gov.uk.
Notes regarding TSM data
Please note that all data for the TSMs include tenant feedback and management figures for properties that we own that are managed by Moat Housing through the Stanhope PFI.
*Figures for Decent Homes Standard (DHS) and repairs include full year data for Stanhope PFI properties and Swale Heating (now known as Sureserve Compliance South) responsive repairs. Reporting from 1 December 2023 to 31 March 2024 only for responsive repairs managed by Ashford Borough Council.
