PEOPLE
Customer voice
PEOPLE
Customer voice
People
Our Corporate Plan priority for People is all about helping customers and colleagues to prosper and live well. In 2024/25, we focused on amplifying customers’ voices, improving accessibility across our channels, and implementing new People and IT strategies.
Customer voice
In our Corporate Plan, we committed to:
Completing our Customer Voice Strategy and Year 1 of the action plan.
Reviewing the customer experience across all channels to improve accessibility and ease of use.
The next few sections on this page will show you how we made the customer voice count in 2023/24.
Customer Voice Strategy
At the start of the year we worked with customers to review our Customer Voice Strategy and the opportunities to be involved and share feedback. We found out that they didn’t work for everyone, and could be more accessible, with more focus on the issues that matter most. Because of this, we launched a new Customer Voice Framework - Your say, your way – a menu of 15 ways to engage at 4 different levels, with something to suit different preferences, time commitments, and interests.
Scrutiny Panel formally reviewed:
The Repairs service, making 40 recommendations for how to improve communication, online services, follow-up, training, flexibility, accessibility, and support for vulnerable residents.
Customers shaped:
One Manchester’s customer channels
Value for Money Strategy
Inclusive Access Policy
Communications, Marketing and Brand Strategy
Priorities for community investment, leading to: a new Youth Panel, youth sessions, winter wellbeing events in five locations, Iftar events during Ramadan, and an intergenerational project with Independent Living Schemes.
Customer Voice Strategy
Growth and Regeneration Strategy
Customer Panels shaped:
Our kitchen supplier and designs
Service charges and letters - informing our review
The former tenant arrears policy and letters
Annual rent letters
Our Building Safety Strategy and safety guidance for high rise customers
EDI Strategy in partnership with HDN
Customer Catch Up newsletter
Customers coproduced:
Our Welcome Pack and new customer journey.
In 2024/25, we:
Launched one new Customer Voice Framework
Consultations held
New Customer Voice Panels launched
Actively involved customers
Customers surveyed
Tenancy experience visits completed
Scrutiny Reviews started
New customers recruited to our committees
Coproduction project collaborated on
Recommendations made by Scrutiny Panel on the repairs service
In 2025/26, we’ll:
Increase the number of diverse voices involved in influencing service outcomes for customers.
Achieve the TPAS accreditation.
Review our Service Standards with customers.
Do a scrutiny of the Complaints service and implement the recommendations.
Work towards a TPAS (tenant engagement experts) accreditation.
About the new Customer Voice Panels
In 24/25 we launched new Customer Panels to give more customers a chance to be involved and hear from more diverse voices. They were designed to focus in on the services and topics that customers told us are most important
to them:
Procurement Panel reviews the companies we partner with and ensures that any new contracts meet customer needs.
Service Charges Panel provides feedback on how service charges are managed. Open to all customers who pay a service charge.
Quality Homes Panel shapes the repairs service and influences decisions on investment in homes.
Communications Panel advises on how we communicate with customers, from the letters we send to the content of the Customer Catch-up.
Customer Service Panel works to improve customer services, focusing on accessibility and service standards.
High-Rise Panel contributes to building safety plans and decisions for high-rise buildings. Open to customers aged 18+ living in high-rise homes.
TSM perception results 24/25
satisfied overall
satisfied with repairs
satisfied with time taken to complete the latest repair
satisfied the home is well maintained
satisfied the home is safe
satisfied we listen to and act on views
satisfied we treat you fairly
satisfied we keep you informed on things that matter
satisfied with our complaints handling approach
satisfied we keep communal areas clean and well maintained
satisfied we make a positive contribution to neighbourhoods
satisfied with our ASB handling
Meet Selina
Selina is on the Communications Panel and Customer and Communities Committee
One Manchester are being more open and saying, ok, this is a problem, what can we do about it. Being more efficient at finding a solution is something that I can see happening more. I’m really happy to see these new panels meeting, and meetings and committees being formed to solve problems.
There’s always room for improvement but One Manchester is doing a lot right. It feels good to be on a panel to help make a difference, and it’s important to me to see One Manchester try to make a difference too.”
customers gave feedback
perception scores improved
increase in overall satisfaction
Read our TSM results in full, along with the action plan we’ve put in place to address your feedback, on our website.
Read the results here
You said, we did: Repairs
You said: You were frustrated when repairs were delayed because they weren’t attended to in the right order. For example, if a painter came before the plasterer.
We did: We’ve made changes in our systems to fix this issue. Now, if an appointment needs to be moved, the entire series of jobs will be reviewed and adjusted, to prevent anyone attending in the wrong order.
Learning from complaints
Every complaint is a chance for us to learn and do better, and we’ve been committed to making changes that benefit all our customers. To make the service better last year, we:
Increased the Customer Experience team from 7 to 9.
Introduced tracking for promises made during investigations.
Launched transactional surveys to find out how you felt the service had been after using it.
Shared performance weekly with complaint handlers and quarterly with Board.
Held learning sessions with Repairs, Neighbourhoods, and Assets colleagues.
We’re happy to see significant improvements in handling complaints on time, even though we received more complaints.
Most (63%) complaints in 2024/25 were about repairs, in particular, fencing and joinery, Healthy Homes, and plumbing.
We used the new learning sessions to address this with our teams and to improve things, we:
Recruited more joinery staff and used
sub-contractors to reduce backlogs.
Created a dedicated fencing team for 2025/26 to improve response times and communication.
Completed stock condition surveys for 75% of high-rise properties.
Introduced a new way of working for follow-on repairs, cutting outstanding jobs by 60% and making sure follow-up work is booked within
24 hours.
Reduced the repairs backlog and halved “no access” cases with a new policy.
Looking ahead
We’re holding a lot more learning sessions with teams, and aiming to reduce complaint extensions and improve communication. We’re also making 30 service improvements based on recommendations from the Customer
Scrutiny Panel. You can read more in our Complaints Annual Report on our website.
Read the results here
In 2024/25, we:
Stage 1 complaints were completed on time
(up from 76% last year)
Stage 2 complaints were completed on time
(up from 73% last year)
Customer Journey Maps were completed and used in learning sessions
complaints were received
(50% more than last year). We want to bring this down, but also see it as reflecting our commitment to making it easier for you to
raise concerns.
Failure to act and response times were the
most common issues.
Outcomes
Stage 1 complaints
upheld
part upheld
not upheld
Stage 2 complaints
upheld
part upheld
not upheld
Housing Ombudsman findings
cases were determined (down from 15 last year)
counts of maladministration and 1
of service failure
was our maladministration rate
(down from 74% last year) We were recognised by the Ombudsman for making a big improvement.
anti-social behaviour case was highlighted as an example of good practice.
Customer experience
In 2024/25 we took a closer look at how easy it was for customers to contact us and get the help they needed by phone, email, and online. We learned:
Most customers still prefer to call us, but wait times and referrals (being passed to another team) are a big frustration.
Repairs are the top reason for getting in touch, and many customers call just to get updates from us.
Communication and follow-up need to improve—customers want clearer information and quicker responses.
Some customers find it hard to use digital channels, and not all online features are easy to find or use.
There are gaps in how we record customer information, which means we sometimes miss chances to tailor our service.
What we’re doing now:
Referrals: We’re analysing why so many calls are referred instead of resolved first time, and we’re training teams to fix more issues on the spot. We’re also building a dashboard to track referrals and making it a regular topic discussed between teams.
Managing expectations: We’re updating our website and welcome packs to give clearer info about repairs and response times. We’ve also publicised our service standards, so you know what to expect.
Process mapping: We’re creating guides and training for staff to help them resolve queries more quickly and consistently and doing regular quality checks.
Digital inclusion: We’re making our website and portal easier to use, improving accessibility features, and making the info you need easier to find. We’re also looking at how we can tailor communication for customers who prefer to email or phone.
Customer involvement: We’re consulting with customers on new service standards, so your voice shapes the way we work.
Tracking progress: We’re monitoring complaints, call volumes, and customer feedback to make sure our changes are making a difference.
Benefits you’ll see in 2025/26:
Faster answers and fewer hand-offs when you contact us.
Clearer information about repairs, timescales, and what to expect.
More consistent and helpful communication.
Better access to digital services and support for those who need it.
Services and standards shaped by customer feedback.
There’s more to do, but these changes are making it easier for you to get the help you need, when you need it - and making sure everyone gets the same high standard of service.
In 2024/25, we received:
calls
emails
Launched the Every Contact Counts campaign, encouraging colleagues to check and update customers’ details at every opportunity they have.
In our 6-month channels review we found:
contacts were handled
87% by phone, 10% via web messages,
and 3% by email
of calls were referred to another team
of calls were about repairs
of digital contacts were about repairs
of customers found contacting us “high effort”
more customers use the website year-on-year
Average call waiting time went up from
2 minutes to 16 minutes in busy periods
Tailoring what we do to offer inclusive services
Through feedback, customers told us that:
Accessibility and communication barriers can make it harder to engage with our services.
Feeling vulnerable can happen to anyone, and support should be tailored to individual needs.
Clear, empathetic communication and practical support make a real difference.
So in 2024/25 we launched a new Inclusive Access Strategy and committed to making our services accessible to all customers, especially those with additional support needs.
This involved implementing a new Reasonable Adjustments Policy based on the “3Rs” framework — Recognise, Respond, Record.
Whether it’s providing large print letters, translations, interpreter support, or tailoring our tenancy visits, we’re making sure our services work for everyone.
Journey to a better customer service team
Our Customer Resolution Centre (CRC) wasn’t performing at the level we wanted, so we worked hard to build a more responsive and reliable service for you.
We brought in more staff, improved training, and changed shift patterns to better match when you need us. We’ve focused on getting things right first time and reducing abandoned calls.
By the end of the year we had improved in these areas:
Call answer rates increased to 86% by March 2025, and they’ve stayed above 90% since April.
Average call answer time dropped to 1 minute 30 seconds.
Email response times dropped to less than one working day.
With more stability, we were able to bring calls back in house, returning all emergency calls to our CRC team from April 2025, and all repairs calls from June.
Monthly answer rate
January
February
March
April
Case study
When Ahmed was unable to maintain his garden due to paralysis, we stepped in to clear it and enrolled him in our Assisted Gardening programme. This kind of personalised support is now part of our standard approach.
Inclusive access isn’t a one-time fix - it’s a continuous journey. We’ll keep working with customers and partners to remove barriers and create connected, sustainable places where everyone can thrive.
James is a member of the EDI Panel
As a customer from Beswick, I was proud to represent my community at the Greater Manchester Housing Providers (GMHP) focus group exploring how housing services can better support individual needs. The session used real-life scenarios to highlight the importance of recognising personal circumstances, and at it, we created 10 guiding principles for reasonable adjustments. These include improving communication, investing in staff training, and embedding inclusive practices across organisations. It was inspiring to contribute to shaping a more responsive and customer-focused housing approach.”
In 2025/26, we’re:
Introducing a new telephone platform with voice recognition for smarter call routing.
Improving our referral process to make sure customers get updates and don’t have to call us to find out the status of requests.
Adding new contact channels that we know customers want to use, including webchat and WhatsApp.
In 2024/25:
We launched Language Line, a one stop shop for accessible communication with customers.
Launched the
Inclusive Access Strategy
Implemented the Reasonable Adjustments Policy – Recognise, Respond, Record
Started using Language Line, a one-stop shop for accessible communication
people used the tool every month
pages viewed accessibly using recite me