How the Service Improvement Panel reviewed Responsive Repairs

Responsive Repairs was chosen as a topic to be reviewed by the Service Improvement Panel (SIP) based on feedback from our 2024 Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs).

In addition, the Resident Assembly identified Responsive Repairs as a topic to be reviewed due to the continuing rise in complaints around the repairs process.

Meetings

The Responsive Repair SIP ran from May - June 2025. The SIP held weekly meetings that involved:

Scoping out the key focus areas
Requesting information from relevant teams
Reviewing policies, procedures, workflows and breakdowns of relevant job roles
Conducting interviews with members of the Repairs team
Reviewing Survey responses around completed repairs in all regions

Once they conducted all interviews, the SIP was able to start mapping out the report from the information they had reviewed.

The SIP met individually outside the sessions to develop the report. They worked closely with PA housing facilitator to ensure they had all the information needed to complete the report and final recommendation.

The report

Once the SIP had produced a draft of their report they met with the Executive Director of Responsive Repairs, Andrew Rossiter, and other PA directors to present their recommendations, make sure the recommendations were reasonable and agree timeframes to implement the agreed recommendations.  

To support the work of the SIP, the supporting Resident Involvement Specialist developed a recommendations tracker. The tracker is reviewed by the Resident Assembly monthly to ensure we are implementing the recommendations within the agreed timeframes. 

Read the recommendations

Choose a topic
No access
Better communication throughout the repair
Expansion of DLO
Dissatisfaction with the contractors
Better Information for residents with disabilities and/or vulnerabilities
Improvements in IT
Neighbourhood Coordinator Training & Liaison
Recharges for invoking contractor penalty clauses

Choose a category
Expansion of DLO

Choose a category
Improvements in IT

Choose a category
Communication
Penalty clauses

Evidencing

Recommendations from the SIP:

Operatives should take a photo of the resident’s front door with a date and time stamp to evidence they have attended but been unable to gain access.

Agreed Actions:

The process around proving evidence around No access is already in place and included time stamped photographs.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Waiting list

Recommendations from the SIP:

Introduction of a cancellation list, that the scheduler could look at, to see if there’s another resident in that area who is available to have an appointment moved forward when there has been no access.

Agreed Actions:

Introduction of a cancellation “waiting list” to be included in overall service review.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Access to residents homes

Recommendations from the SIP:

Publish an article to the website to highlight the issues around no access to residents' home.

Agreed Actions:

Introduction of a cancellation “waiting list” to be included in overall service review
For more information please contact [email protected]

Gaining access

Recommendations from the SIP:

Provide relevant codes and fobs/keys to contractors to gain access.

Agreed Actions:

Providing codes and fobs/keys to contractors to gain access, is already in place.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Text messages
Recommendations from the SIP:

Introduce text messages into the process as follows:
- First message to state PA Housing have tried to make contact to book a repair
- Two follows on messages if residents do not respond
- If no response is received cancel the repair.
Agreed Actions:

The Repairs Team will liaise with our IT team to establish if this workflow can be built into our systems.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Phone number

Recommendations from the SIP:

Set up a dedicated phone number that shows the caller ID as "PA Repairs Team".

Agreed Actions:

The Repairs Team will work with IT colleagues to look into the feasibility of assigning an ID to the phone line to make the resident aware they are being contacted by the Repairs Team.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Appointment rotas

Recommendations from the SIP:

Consider assigning members of the Scheduling Team (DLO) and Repairs Admin Team (LSE) on a rota basis to focus solely on booking appointments for residents where there was previously "no access".

Agreed Actions:

The Repairs Team will consider how this can be implemented within the current staffing structure and will review future recruitment with new staff being recruited to contracts stipulating the requirement to work evenings and Saturday mornings.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Communal repairs

Recommendations from the SIP:

Every resident within a scheme should be notified of open communal repairs and an update should be provided to residents once the repair has been completed. This update should be well communicated to all residents.

Agreed Actions:

The Repairs team will discuss this recommendation with the Communications team and the Neighbourhood team to establish the best way of providing this information to residents. We will look to establish if these can be done through the Neighbourhood Pages on the PA website.
For more information please contact [email protected]

DLO
Recommendations from the SIP:

Mirror the DLO process across London and the Southeast:
- Send a text message to confirm the booking
- Send a reminder text message the week before the appointment
- Send a message to advise that the operative is on the way or if they are running late
- Provide an update if the appointment needs to be rearranged (for example due to a part not being in stock, sickness absence). Call the resident to rearrange the appointment for them.
Agreed Actions:

Wates have introduced a new dynamic scheduling tool which includes a workflow to send a text message confirming a booking has been made. The Repairs Team will explore the other text messages recommended to confirm if they can also build them into the system.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Satisfaction survey

Recommendations from the SIP:

Undertake satisfaction surveys after each completed repair.

Agreed Actions:

Satisfaction Surveys are already in place. GovMetric undertake surveys for the Midlands. For LSE we undertake a combination of GovMetric as well as surveys undertaken by Wates. Each month we undertake approximately 3,000 repairs and on average receive 1,000 survey responses. As at June our year to date satisfaction rate was 97% across all regions.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Expansion of DLO

Recommendations from the SIP:

Consider expanding the DLO service into London and the Southeast.

Agreed Actions:

Introducing a DLO to London and the Southeast, especially to London, is much more complex. This is something PA Housing are exploring but it's a big project that will require a careful review.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Post inspection survey

Recommendations from the SIP:

Undertake post inspection surveys to verify the quality of the work completed (this should include photos).

Agreed Actions:

Post inspection surveys are already in place. All works valued at more than £1,000 are post inspected. We aim to undertake post inspections for 10% of works undertaken under £1,000. This is working well for the DLO but is an area we need to improve upon for LSE.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Monitoring performance

Recommendations from the SIP:

Closely monitor performance of sub-contractors.

Agreed Actions:

Every month PA Housing review all sub-contractor key performance indicators. Going forward all new subcontractors are subject to the same key performance indicators as Wates which allow us to better scrutinise their performance.
For more information please contact [email protected]

"Help us to Help you" campaign

Recommendations from the SIP:

Consider running a "Help us to Help you" campaign to raise awareness among residents who have a disability and vulnerability of the benefits this can bring to them when PA are delivering a service to them.

Agreed Actions:

We welcome this recommendation and plan to incorporate it into our wider Silent Voice project. A “Help Us to Help You” campaign will support our efforts to raise awareness among residents with disabilities and vulnerabilities about the benefits of sharing relevant information. This will help ensure that PA can tailor services more effectively and sensitively, reinforcing our commitment to inclusive and responsive service delivery.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Disability and Vulnerability Team

Recommendations from the SIP:

Consider setting up a dedicated Disability and Vulnerability Team.

Agreed Actions:

While we are not establishing a dedicated Disability and Vulnerability Team at this time, we believe it is essential that awareness and responsiveness to residents’ needs are embedded across all teams.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Data quality

Recommendations from the SIP:

Information held on PA systems about residents who have disabilities and/or vulnerabilities needs to be up to date, relevant and sufficient to allow PA to adapt their services if necessary.

Agreed Actions:

As part of our ongoing Silent Voice campaign, we are actively strengthening how we manage and use information about residents with disabilities and vulnerabilities.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Improvements in IT

Recommendations from the SIP:

Implement further Improvements to NEC and IT Systems to ensure internal process run more smoothly.

Agreed Actions:

Identify issues with Scheduling team (DLO) and Repairs Admin team (LSE) as well as Contact Centre staff. Discuss issues with IT to identify improvements that can be implemented.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Conflict management training

Recommendations from the SIP:

All staff should be provided with training to ensure they are confident and supported in dealing with aggressive behaviour.

Agreed Actions:

This training is already in place. The Repairs team will ensure that this training has been rolled out all members of the team.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Cross-team working

Recommendations from the SIP:

Arrange regular joint meetings between the Scheduling Team, Repairs Admin Team and Neighbourhood Coordinators to discuss issues and improve relationships.

Agreed Actions:

Regular joint meetings between the Scheduling Team, Repairs Admin Team, and Neighbourhood Coordinators are already in place to support collaboration and issue resolution.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Training

Recommendations from the SIP:

Ensure Neighbourhood Coordinators receive appropriate training on repairs (including regular refresher training).

Agreed Actions:

This is already in place, with Neighbourhood Coordinators receiving training on repairs to support their role effectively. We agree that regular refresher training is essential to maintain knowledge, ensure consistency, and keep pace with any changes in process or systems.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Resident Champions

Recommendations from the SIP:

Neighbourhood Coordinators should work closely with the Resident Champions for them to provide access for communal repairs and provide details of repair to the contractors.

Agreed Actions:

This recommendation is already in place, with Neighbourhood Coordinators working alongside Resident Champions to support access for communal repairs and communicate details to contractors.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Communication

Recommendations from the SIP:

Ensure clear communication is provided to residents to inform them that any repairs undertaken deemed to be the result of tenant damage will be recharged to them.

Agreed Actions:

This process is in place for void works. The Repairs Team will liaise with the Finance team to establish a process for day-to-day repairs.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Penalty clauses

Recommendations from the SIP:

Enforce contract penalty clauses with Contractors.

Agreed Actions:

This process is already in place with penalties being issued for missed appointments.
For more information please contact [email protected]

Please select a topic to learn more

Please select a recommendations to learn more

Quotes from residents

“Even after all the interviews we’d carried out as part of the Resident Assembly Action Plan last year, this has still been a huge eye-opener for me. It shows there is still a lot of work to do, not only to improve the repairs service from PA’s side, but to make residents themselves aware of this serious problem of no access. If we can improve this one issue, I’m confident the whole service would run more effectively. PA must persevere with rectifying this issue. We have made several recommendations towards this.

There is no doubt in my mind that the teams around the repairs activities would love for it to be resolved. They are dedicated and passionate about the service they provide for their residents, but it has to be a two-way street and, for me, anything we can do that makes a positive contribution to improving the Repairs Service is a bonus.” 

- SIP Lead

“This has been a great opportunity to engage with other residents that share the same interest in working towards improving repair services at PA. An experience which has been thoroughly enjoyable and worthwhile. I received excellent support from the Resident Assembly Chair and PA staff.

I found the team meetings and interviews with Repairs well organised, and the interviewees provided me with important and useful information on their day-to-day work, which has given me a real insight into the difficulties they face.

Resident feedback on the questionnaires was extremely useful in enabling us as a team to report and provide recommendations on areas for improvement.”

- SIP Panel Member

“Thank you to the team for the opportunity to be involved — it’s been incredibly informative. I’ve started to get a better understanding of how PA Housing works behind the scenes, and I’ve been especially struck by the dedication of the staff. 

One thing that stands out for me is just how much effort the team puts into gaining access to carry out repairs. I realised how many repeated attempts are often needed, and how much time that takes. If residents could better understand this challenge, I think this might make a real difference. 

Improving access could go a long way toward making the whole service run more smoothly and less stressful for team operatives. We probably have several suggestions we could make on this score. In general, however, communication still seems to be a sticking point, and I am sure Digital Services can come up with ways of improving this.  Responsiveness needs improvement on the part of residents also. Anything we can do together to improve things is a win for everyone.”

- SIP Panel Member