YMCA England: 2008 Resident Survey - Introduction to the survey report
Background to and reliability of the Survey
The Executive Summary of the report includes the context for the ‘STATUS’ Survey of all YMCA England residents. The Survey was carried out by the National Housing Federation’s Feedback service using a postal questionnaire to capture a snapshot of resident satisfaction with the services they receive from YMCA England and those local YMCAs which act as managing agents for YMCA England’s housing stock. The Survey findings have generated a benchmark which will allow YMCA England to:
- Update the demographic and socio-economic profile of residents;
- Provide an up to date picture of residents’ satisfaction with their homes and with the services provided;
- Compare the performance of YMCA England as a landlord with other social landlords who have used STATUS surveys
- Inform service reviews and drive service improvement.
At the time of the Survey, there were 919 residents: 293 responses were achieved, equating to 32%. This provides statistical reliability of +/- 4.8% accuracy. By way of illustration, we can be 95% confident that a survey result of 80% from the 293 respondents would, if all residents had responded, be in the range of 75.2% - 84.8%.
The Survey protocols are such that the overall responses cannot be analysed at scheme or resident level; rather the results are to provide a general picture which will inform improvement.
Key messages
As in so many things, the devil will be in the detail but, overall, the results provide both positive messages and some pointers to the need to target further effort in relation to particular groups of residents and to particular aspects of service.
On the positive side:
- 85% are satisfied with the services provided by their support worker – a tribute to those who provide support to some of our most vulnerable residents
- 82% were satisfied with the way in which their re-housing was handled
- 78% were satisfied with the quality of their home.
Where there is apparently more scope for improvement is in areas including:
- 60% are satisfied with the general condition of shared facilities
- 65% feel that their rent represents good value for money
- 70% think that their landlord takes account of their views, and
- 70% are satisfied with the overall repairs and maintenance service, but
- 64% were dissatisfied with the information they were given about the repair
- 60% were dissatisfied with the time taken to complete repairs, and
- 25% were dissatisfied with both of these aspects of the repair service.
The Survey also showed that older residents (over 35), new residents (less than six months), part time workers and students are often more satisfied than younger residents, longer term residents, BME residents and those who are on (relatively) higher incomes and/or are permanently sick or disabled. This information begs questions and should help us target our improvement efforts, testing some of the hypotheses that might flow from the findings. For example:
- Does the lower satisfaction of longer term residents reflect the ‘novelty wearing off’ and a more discerning, demanding and informed customer emerging once the immediate need for accommodation is overcome?
We will also need to better understand how to meet the needs and aspirations of the least satisfied; including BME and those with a disability: the starting point must be to better understand those needs in the first place and this will involve getting to know our current and prospective residents better in a planned way.
We do not, of course, operate in isolation: whilst it is difficult to identify a peer group of comparator organisations from those others who have undertaken STATUS surveys, the Feedback service has benchmarked YMCA’s results against a peer group of mainly small housing associations with high percentages of young residents, either operating locally or nationally:
- YMCA’s performance was above average (5%-8% higher) for overall landlord services, quality of the home, ease of contacting the right person, overall repairs service and account taken of views.
- YMCA’s performance was close to average (+/- 3%) for satisfaction with value for money, neighbourhood, helpfulness of staff, aspects of the repairs service, attitude shown by repairs contractors and keeping residents informed.
- YMCA’s performance was below average in the peer group (5% lower) for information given about repair work.
Conclusion and recommendations
To quote from the Survey report, ‘The results from the survey demonstrate convincingly that residents believe that YMCA is providing a good housing service.’
This is, however, no cause for complacency and the following actions are proposed:
- A Working Group of representatives of both YMCA England and Managing Agents is formed to develop an action plan and to steer improvement actions informed by the Report
- The Working Group gives consideration to how best residents might be involved in the design and delivery of improvement actions, at both national and local level
- The Report is presented to the September meetings of the Board and the Development & Housing Committee of YMCA England and the Minute extracts are provided to the Working Group
- The Report is presented to a meeting of the governing body at each YMCA Managing Agent and the Minute extracts provided to the Working Group
- The findings are summarised in a newsletter to residents and the full report published on the YMCA England website.
Ian Richardson
Interim Director of Housing
3rd September 2008
YMCA 2008 Resident Survey (