Resident Voice and Influence Panel

Complaints Scrutiny

’Customer Voice and influence’ is at the heart of our values.   During March 2025, Resident Voice and Influence Panel ( RVIP) RVIP completed a scrutiny project on how complaints are managed and how learning is embedded. This review helped to understand what we were doing well in, and also areas for improvement. 

The scrutiny bootcamp started with a comprehensive Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis of the complaints process; followed by “ in-depth meetings with individual members of Estuary to aid there view.

As part of this review the group also visited the Axis office, our responsive repairs contract or to discuss their complaints management systems. They also met with the Board member responsible for complaints for Estuary to review some cases.  

• Several areas of good practice were identified:  
• Excellent organisational approach to complaints handling. EG – Board, CEO, Executive Management Team, Teams and officers. Complaints are not left to the front facing teams.
• Back-office staff offer an independent perspective.
• Our complaints process is accessible to our customers
• External training has been delivered to strengthen the complaints culture and quality of responses issued.
• Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code training provided to all Estuary staff
• Resident Lessons Learnt Project Group
• Developed a constructive working relationship with Axis and access to their complaints management system. Advocate early personal contact and rapport building with complainants
• Complaints objective for all annual staff appraisals
• Weekly Complaints Cases & Actions meetings with investigating officers.
• Assistant Director and Director of Customer Services undertake sample reviews of responses to check quality.
• Excellent Tpas feedback following the accreditation process
• Good performance compared to peer group
• The group as part of the review also presented some recommendations and next steps which have been carried out, which included:
• Annual report – Should include additional trend analysis for the past three years: 

 Our latest annual report includes three years’ worth of data . Here’s our report -  AnnualComplaints Performance and Service Improvement Report 2024-25 | Estuary

• Better shared learning with customers: 

We continue to improve the way we share our learning. We currently have a complaint learning page, which provides updates from learning from complaints- Learning Points | Estuary. We also have a lessons learnt project group -  Lessons LearntProject Group | Estuary

• Deep dive into trends based on customer profiling : 

We have begun looking at complaint trends using customer profiling, so we can better understand customer experiences and needs.  This will also allow us to highlight any customer groups which may benefit from additional support. 

• Staff awareness of tenure blind approach to complaints:  

As part of our training with staff, we ensure that all complaints are logged and managed according to our policy which is inclusive of all tenures.  

RVIP continue to monitor this area of the business and meet quarterly to review responses and measure performance against the Housing Ombudsman Code. If you would like to join these meetings please contact us on 0300304500 or email Involvement@estuary.co.uk. 

Fly tipping— otherwise known as the illegal dumping of waste—is a significant, current national problem. As well as being an eyesore, it poses health and safety risks and increases pests in local areas. It also increases council tax charges where Local Authorities are responsible and, in our customers’ case, can increase service charges when our Grounds and Maintenance Team must carry out additional collections and disposals.

In February 2024, our RVIP decided that the time was right to look into this issue further and began a year-long scrutiny review of fly tipping. They made initial recommendations, and a new pilot was introduced in four locations, focusing on education, improved signage, and enforcement.

In addition, Estuary committed to participating in The Great British Spring Clean, a national initiative by Keep Britain Tidy that encourages communities to come together to tackle litter. In April 2024, we held our own version of the event and collected over 80 bags of litter from three locations. In April 2025, we focused solely on the Woodgrange Drive Estate; we quadrupled our number of volunteers, collected nearly 100 bags of litter, and even involved the Easter Bunny! Purdy, Axis and Mitie also joined us, showing their support for the community and sharing in the day’s spirit.

During the fly-tipping pilot, signage was tested to measure its effectiveness as a deterrent. Brightly coloured, with simple messages, advice, and QR codes linking customers to local council bulk disposal services, this signage is now being rolled out in areas with high levels of fly tipping across our stock.

Although there were initial reductions, it was concluded that signage alone was ineffective. Fly tipping notification cards were introduced, and after thirty-four households received a first warning, there were no repeat offenders. Twenty-two 24-hour removal notifications were issued, with only one repeat offender. We now have a consistent recharge system in place for repeat offenders.

It was found that some of our locations do not have a fly-tipping problem at all, whereas other areas have required multiple additional collections. Going forward, the focus will be on intervention in areas with high levels of fly tipping and minimal intervention in those with lower levels. Tailoring our approach is both cost- and time-effective.

It was concluded that a combined approach of signage, engagement, and enforcement is required. Our brilliant RVIP will conduct bi-annual reviews to monitor the progress of this scrutiny project.