Wise Money Campaign John Orton Financial Inclusion Manager & Hannah Elford Design & Communications Manager
Who are Paragon Community Housing Group? • Formed in 2007 • Elmbridge Housing Trust & Richmond Churches Housing Trust • 9000 properties • Work across 10 local authority areas located in South West London & Surrey • General Needs, Sheltered, Supported Housing, Care Homes, Key Worker, Leasehold
Wise Money Campaign Group includes staff from: Financial Inclusion Group • Tenancy • Income • Welfare Benefits • Resident Involvement • Communications • Finance • IT Welfare Reform Group • Leasehold • Directors
Wise Money Campaign – June 2012 Decided who our audience was • Affected • Not Affected • Maybe Affected • Needed to understand our residents better • Employees
Wise Money Campaign – June 2012 Key Decisions on how we would communicate • Make it personal – Intensive use of 1:1 contact by phone and in person • Make contacting the right people at Paragon as easy as possible • Paragon is supporting / helping you – significant investment in resources • What we couldn’t do
Established a Communications Plan – July 2012
Initial Contact with Residents – July 2012 Article in our Resident magazine
1 st Local Providers Forum – July 2012 Getting RPs & others together to discuss approach to WR
Internal Communication – August 2012 • Clear Updates to Board • Communicate to staff • Discussions at Staff / Chief Exec Briefings • Told staff about work done by the Welfare Reform Group • Guide for staff to use when talking to residents
Website Pop-Up
Welfare Reform Leaflet – Sept 2012
Annual Report – October 2012 • Sent in Wise Money Branded envelopes • Contained information on Welfare Reform • Use of different colours / designs
Other ways of delivering the message
Other simple ways of getting the message out • Changed our telephone greeting Highlighting Welfare Reform • Made Welfare Benefits Option 1
Paragon @ the Pictures – Dec 2012
UK Housing Awards Campaign of the Year For Wise Money
Why? Paragon started its campaign to educate residents and staff about the changes before cuts to housing benefit were introduced Campaign publicised via mailshot to residents, pop-up on Paragon’s website and staff briefings 15 per cent increase in residents seeking help from Paragon’s W elfare Benefits Advisors Prompted rise in referrals to the advisors from other staff Three quarters of those attending the cinema event said they heard about the changes through wise money The campaign had reached many people and by the growth in residents seeking advice as a result
The Campaign since April 2013… • Strengthening digital comms • Trying things out • Finding better ways to communicate
The New leaflet…. There is still room for Improvement!
What is happening now… …while we all wait for UC • More data profiling • Improving website • Gathering more information • Updating staff on WR
What else?
What else? Jobs Clubs
What else? • Lean Review of Arrears Procedure • Ability to pay rent from start of Tenancy • Arrears Letters to look like invoices • Process based on amount owed not weeks of rent owing • Increase in ways to pay
What else? Back 2 Work Fund • Fund getting residents back into work • Fund residents in the 1 st few weeks of getting back into work
What else is happening now… …while we all wait for UC • • Working with those affected by the Review of key jobs @ Paragon Bedroom Tax • Consolidation of Housing Management • Working with those affected by the Benefits Cap • Collecting additional data held on residents • MX Events • Refreshing data held on residents • In-house Money Management courses • Access to Pay Day Lender websites • Improving links with Credit Unions blocked • Staff skills audit
What next? December / January February / March • • Next Issue of Resident Magazine Next round of Money Mgmt Courses • • Review of Job Clubs Next Local Providers Forum • • Estate Day Promotions Review Welfare Reform Action Plan • • Next Xmas Cinema Event Things we haven’t thought of yet! • Review Communications Plan
John Orton jorton@paragonchg.co.uk Hannah Elford helford@paragonchg.co.uk
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