Broken hearted (part two)
Consultation with South Tyneside Homes
South Tyneside Homes, the Arms Length Management Organisation set up by South Tyneside Council to administer it’s social housing is in an enormous struggle to achieve it’s two star audit rating that would qualify for a massive injection of government funding.
One of it’s problems involves it’s level of communication and consultation, and the methods by which it connects with it’s clients, tenants, and the community. Word has reached the Corner Shop that this consultation process is not always as effective as it might be. Such an exercise was to be carried out yesterday with a meeting at 5.00 p.m. when most people are still making their way home from work, this does create a bit of a problem for some people. The meeting was to be held in Strathmore House, Jarrow, the company’s head office, it’s a bit like being invited into the lion’s den, some might see this as being a little intimidating and not conducive to the open and honest free exchange of ideas. Such a meeting in such a venue might be considered as difficult for some to get to by public transport and also allows South Tyneside Homes to operate within it’s own “comfort zone”.
Real consultation should involve the use of a neutral venue where all parties can be comfortable within the environment, at a time and place that would attract maximum involvement and produce the optimum results. By failing to reach out in this way South Tyneside Homes is effectively limiting the input of it’s tenants.
No wonder so many people are feeling a bit “broken hearted” over the process.
Are these venues deliberatley set in hard-to-reach areas so that it attracts less involvement, thereby allowing decisions which suit senior management to be made more easily?
Comment by Weazel — March 13, 2008 @ 11:04 pm
I have received many invitations to be “consulted” from South Tyneside Homes. The problem is I could not attend, why? Because it is held at 5.00pm.
I have pointed out to South Tyneside Homes that meeting at this time prevent me and others attending, but do they listen? Answer- No
They have also seen fit to have these consultation meetings in their cosy offices at Strathmore, very difficult to get to if you have no transport and its their comfort zone.
I’ll get to my point, How can you have proper consultation in the lions den? Answer, you can’t- this is intimidating and manipulative and is wrong.
How can you have maximum attendance in the lions den at 5.00pm? Answer you can’t, again manipulative.
Proper consultation is in the comfort zone of those who’s views you seek and this is at a time to suit them in a venue to suit them.
Conclusion - They don’t really want your input
Comment by Tim x — March 14, 2008 @ 5:03 pm
This is becoming a pattern of total disregard for the tenant opinion and reminds me that in broken hearted part one (Oct 2007) there was suggestion there that South Tyneside Homes had systematically dismantled the Tenant Involvement Section. This latest development also suggests that they do not want tenant input.
Comment by A Residents Association Rep — March 14, 2008 @ 5:23 pm
[...] was only on 13th. March that I made this post highlighting the concerns about the “consultation process” being operated by South [...]
Pingback by Broken hearted (part three) « Curly’s Corner Shop, the blog! — March 29, 2008 @ 8:28 am
[...] , quite how they expect to meet the aspirations of their tenant customers is difficult to imagine, we have already seen in this blog how South Tyneside Homes holds interactive consultative meetings with it’s community [...]
Pingback by Open all hours « Curly’s Corner Shop, the blog! — March 31, 2008 @ 10:10 am