Findings taken throughout the year by Bield show that across its 140 developments, greater efforts to involve tenants has led to a cultural change, dispensing with annual meetings in favour of ongoing communications and involvement.

The report represents the first time that Bield has been able to compare two sets of information - the first from 2013/14 have been assessed against the 2014/15 findings.

The report will now be issued to all Bield developments as part of an ongoing drive to share good practice and successful initiatives between different sites.

Chris McShane, tenant engagement officer at Bield, said: “It is important to collect this data as it helps give us a picture of where our strengths and weaknesses are in regards to engagement at developments and also lets us target any areas for improvement.

“The majority of our tenants are now very proactive and it is great to see, it is important that we continue ensuring that tenants play a central role in the day to day running of the development as well as consulting on the wider issues at Bield.”

A notable finding from the two sets of information was the sizeable increase in Local Issues Meetings jumped from 108 to 256. These meetings let tenants discuss issues such as repair works or changes to service standards at their development. Such meetings are now regularly held at 53 per cent of Bield developments.

2014/15 also saw a number of developments undergo the move from sheltered housing to retirement housing and tenants at these developments have had the chance to liaise with staff about the proposed changes.

During 2015-16 Bield developments will see the introduction of a tenant scrutiny body. It will provide tenants with the power to analyse areas of Bield’s performance and put forward recommendations for how it can be improved in the future.

Chris added: “We are making a concerted effort to move away from the old model of annual development meetings as we move to a more ongoing consultative approach.

“The introduction of the tenant scrutiny body this year will represent a landmark step forward in Bield’s tenant engagement programme and should benefit both tenants and Bield in the longer term.

“As part of Bield’s free to be ethos we want tenants to be able to affect what goes on at the place they call home and we believe this is so important for their happiness and general wellbeing.”

The findings from the engagement survey come just months after Bield revealed figures from a tenant satisfaction report that showed 95 per cent of tenants would recommend Bield as a landlord and 94 per cent of tenants would recommend the development they live in. Meanwhile 90 per cent said that moving into their Bield home had improved their peace of mind and more than 50 per cent reported that moving had improved their physical health.

@BieldScotland