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Update: 19th June

After discussing further details regarding Barbara’s response, I have updated the Scope & Plan document which you’ll find attached and provided some explanation below for next steps:

Essentially, the topic you want to scrutinise does not really work due to Riverside having very little control over the entirety of the re-housing procedure and policy. As housing associations work in close partnership with regional and local authorities, there are aspects to the lettings & allocations process that are determined by local government, not Riverside itself – the Choice-Based Lettings Scheme, for example, is run by the local councils and Riverside only have a policy for working alongside them.

The scope of scrutiny is limited to Riverside policy, procedure, and operations that are within Riverside’s power to change and control. As that is not the case with this particular topic, I have some ideas as to how we can move forward with this area of concern:

  1. Discontinue Scrutiny Working Group meetings for now
  2. Invite an officer from Lettings & Allocations to attend the next Disability Group Meeting
  3. Lettings Officer presents the finer details of the allocations/re-housing process, including the difference between local government policy and Riverside policy. Customers can then ask questions and raise concerns for discussion.
  4. Depending on what is learned from the session, you could decide to either:
  • continue the Scrutiny Working Group if enough scope remains for an inspection
  • OR
  • Disability Group to suggest a future partnership with TRIP/Homes Panel for a wider DEI project to explore any possible recommendations for change

Now, I do want to make a disclaimer that this is my best interpretation of the Lettings & Allocations situation, and as I am not a Lettings Officer myself, I suggest the most important thing to do next is have a conversation with someone from Lettings to be sure we are all clear on what the process is and what you want to change. And also, what CAN change and why/why not.