The event took place on 4 June, and aimed to give tenants a voice in big decisions from service design, to how the Association can get more tenants engaged in the rent consultation process.

Brian Hutcheson facilitated the event and led the interactive games. In the first part of the night, teams competed against each other for points in a Family Fortunes style quiz. 

Laura Strang, Glen Oaks customer experience leader, then gave a snapshot into the triannual survey results, and asked tenants to discuss and decide what options for improving the repair service was most important to them. 

Nicola Logan, chief executive, said: “We wanted our BIG Conversation event this year to focused on getting tenants to help us design our services, so that we prioritise what is important to them first. It is an exciting time of change for Glen Oaks with a real focus on improving services and streamlining our internal processes. Tenant experience and feedback will shape our services more than ever before, and we want our tenants to know we have listened to their feedback through the recent triannual survey and that we are taking action.

“At Glen Oaks, we want to be innovative in our approach to tenant engagement, so by using the digital voting system, tenants had the chance to have their voices heard easily, in a fun environment and allowed us to have feedback that we can take away and work with.” 

The second team quiz game was a higher or lower value for money challenge. Tenants were asked to vote higher or lower on ten statements; these included whether Glen Oaks’ recent rent increase was higher or lower than the sector average, or whether the cost of the Association dealing with items that were fly-tipped was higher or lower than Glasgow City Council’s £5 uplift charge. This game highlighted the key challenges around value for money and aimed to promote the Association’s performance or achievements in trying to strike the balance between cost and quality of service. 

Finally, tenants were asked to discuss how Glen Oaks could encourage more tenants to engage with the rent consultation process. Tenants used the voting system to give their opinion on the timing of the consultation, what incentive should be given to take part and what other ways of gaining feedback could be introduced.

Michael Smith, board chairperson, opened the night and thanked everyone for coming along. He said: “It was great to see our tenants take part in the discussions that will improve our services for the better. The interactive element of the night really allowed for not only fun quizzes but for real time feedback that was so insightful. We really want tenants to have a voice in designing our services and events like this allow staff to take onboard the great ideas our tenants have.”

The winning team was Oakley Folky and overall top scorer on the night was Eleanor Stewart, a long-standing member of the Association’s tenant scrutiny group. Everyone who attended received a shopping voucher as a thank you for coming along and taking part. 

Glen Oaks is delighted to note that a high number of tenants who attended want to get involved in the tenant scrutiny group, or the Armchair Critic Group going forward. Feedback on the event was positive, with tenants feeling like their views had been listened to.

Arden, a tenant, commented: “I had a great night. Enjoyed meeting everyone, very good feedback regarding the event. Staff were fantastic, food was great, and the Quiz was fun. More tenants should show up for these events as it is an opportunity to influence things.” 

A highlight video of the event can be found below: