Leeds Jewish Housing Association has been recognised at Civic Hall after achieving outstanding tenant satisfaction results, with residents praising the quality of its homes, services and community impact.
Leeds Jewish Housing Association has been praised by the city’s Lord Mayor after delivering strong resident satisfaction results and continuing its long-standing work to support communities in north Leeds. Staff from the association were welcomed to Civic Hall by the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress in recognition of the organisation’s achievements, including an overall tenant satisfaction rating of 86.9%.
The recognition follows LJHA’s latest Tenant Satisfaction Measures survey, which is carried out annually in line with requirements set by the Regulator of Social Housing. The survey asks residents 12 standardised questions covering key areas of the tenant experience, including the quality of homes, repairs and maintenance, building safety, communication, complaint handling, anti-social behaviour and cleanliness.
LJHA performed strongly across all 12 categories, scoring above the upper quartile benchmark in every area. One of its most striking results came in satisfaction with complaints, where it exceeded the benchmark by more than 17%. The figures also highlighted major progress over time, with improvements across all survey measures over the past two years approaching or exceeding 20%.
Addressing LJHA staff at the gathering, the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Councillor Dan Cohen said:
“I’m very lucky in that I live in north Leeds and so I’ve seen at first-hand, spoken to your residents face-to-face, and witnessed in a real, meaningful way the transformation across Leeds Jewish Housing and your engagement with your residents.
“How residents view Leeds Jewish Housing, how they feel about their property, about the relationships they have with each and every one of you – the change in the quality of that relationship is palpable.
“I wanted to recognise on behalf of the city that movement, that change, that journey. We need to engage in a deeper more meaningful way, but you’ve done that and your residents’ lives are significantly improved because of it.
“Ultimately, that’s why we’re here in the jobs we do, we’re here to improve the lives of residents to give safe, secure, comfortable housing, but there’s so much more around that. I wanted on behalf of the city to recognise that, to thank you for that.
“Senior leadership was clear that this is not a normal level of improvement. This is dramatic, sustained and impactive. Because of that, they were clear that what we did today could not just be a normal event.
“It had to be here, it had to be in the heart of the city so that you know how valued you are by the city, and the city itself could recognise the immense work that every single person in this room – from the most senior leader to the most junior member of staff – has undertaken to improve lives for your residents, for our community, for our city.”
Residents gave particularly positive feedback on the way they are treated by the association, with 94.1% agreeing that LJHA treats them fairly and with respect. Another 92.9% said communal areas were clean and well maintained, while 91.3% said they were kept informed about matters that are important to them.
The association also scored highly for its wider role in the community, with 91% of respondents saying they were satisfied with LJHA’s positive contribution to the neighbourhood.
Other standout results included 89.4% of tenants describing their home as safe and secure, 87.3% expressing satisfaction with the repairs service and 85.3% saying their property was well maintained.
Commenting on the survey outcome, Mark Grandfield, LJHA Chief Executive said:
“We have been on something of a journey in recent years, with continuous improvement the central theme of what has been achieved.
“LJHA was ranked in the lowest quartile for resident satisfaction just four years ago. However, following significant investment in customer service training, we have made major advances in this area and across other metrics with scores up by close to or beyond 20% in all categories over the past two years.
“This is all down to the professionalism and dedication of our staff at every level. They are a fantastic team to work with.”
Craig Simons, LJHA Director of Operations said:
“As a relatively small housing association, I believe we are punching well above our weight. Despite our success, we are determined to strive for even higher standards with ongoing training central to our work including ‘huddles’ run by staff taking place every two weeks.
“It was an honour to be invited to Civic Hall by the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress to celebrate our achievements. They are wonderful supporters of LJHA and we were proud to spend time with them in such an impressive and historic setting.”
Founded on October 22, 1953, Leeds Jewish Housing Association is a long-established Jewish-led, community-based registered social housing provider. The organisation manages around 500 properties and provides a mix of homes for single people, families, older residents and shared ownership.
Its properties are located in the LS17 area of Leeds, mainly in Moortown and Alwoodley, and it continues to focus on providing sustainable community housing, particularly for the local Jewish community.
The Civic Hall recognition marks an important moment for the association as it builds on its latest results and continues its work to provide high-quality homes and services for residents across Leeds.
