Episode 5 - Tracey Rilett

In this episode, Mark and Nerys speak with Tracey Rilett, a Retirement Living Manager with over two decades of experience, about what genuinely person-centred housing looks like in practice, and why the gap between what we see and what's really going on behind someone's front door matters more than we think.

From life-saving technology to the quiet, unseen work of tackling loneliness, this is a conversation about the human realities of housing and technology enabled care, and what it means to get it right.

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:05

Hi, I'm Mark, and in my day job I work in the technology-enabled care sector. And this is Home Truths, where we try and have interesting conversations with people in and around the care sector and bring them directly to you.

SPEAKER_01 0:16

I'm Neris. I work alongside Mark in the sector, and we're really lucky to be joined today with uh Tracy from Black Country Housing. Welcome, Tracy. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 0:26

Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 0:27

Tracy, tell us a little bit about what you do.

SPEAKER_00 0:29

Yeah, so thanks for inviting me, first of all. My name's Tracy Rylett from Black Country Housing Group. I'm a retirement living manager. I've been doing that role since 2021. I've worked for the organisation, I've been in housing for a very long time. Started with Black Country back in 1998. I've done a variety of jobs working in the Home Improvement Agency and then moving into the housing operations team. Currently looking after retirement living schemes, which is 55 plus. So I've got a number of schemes with a variety of clients, all with different needs, different ages, starting from 55 upwards. And what's the what's the oldest person in your scheme? Oh, I've got somebody who's just recently celebrated their 100th birthday this year in one of my schemes, which is a really real joy and celebration. It was great.

SPEAKER_02 1:14

And what draws you to housing? What cat what was drew you in the first place and what keeps you in housing?

SPEAKER_00 1:19

Um the people. I think it's really important that I'm a people person, so I enjoy working with people. I think they're interesting. Um, I like listening to people, I like making a difference to people's lives. I think the jobs that I've always done have demonstrated that. And I think in housing it's changed so much over the last number of years. Um, and we make such a difference in people's lives, especially at Black Country Housing. Um, we're a real values-driven led organisation, and um, yeah, and so I think the reason I do that is because the social purpose of what we do um and demonstrating those values of we care and making differences in people's lives, it's really important.

SPEAKER_02 1:58

Yeah, so I to I have to declare I've got a real soft spot for the housing generally, right? And supported housing and general needs housing plays a massive part. I think for my looking across Europe, it's quite a British construct, right? After the war, we were trying to build communities for our veterans to start with, and that's how these concepts started. And today it's still quite unique, right? There aren't many other countries that do it the way we do it, and that's so the communities that you end up building in the schemes that you have and the properties you have, is something so unique and special about that. And I guess that's a really important part of your job is curating those communities, right?

SPEAKER_00 2:29

It's making sure that we have great schemes that um meet the vision of our organisation, but actually that people are really happy within their tenancies, that they have successful tenancies, and that they are happy that we are providing a really constructive events calendar, that we're providing a service where they feel safe, where the technology that they use, that they feel safe in that technology, um, and just making sure that it reaches all of their needs. You know, we've got people 55, we've got people 100. The difference between those people are decades and their needs are very, very different. And so what we offer is a really bespoke service. What I love about what we do is we've got scheme managers at every one of our sites, which is quite unique to our full-time scheme managers, and they are there supporting our customers, delivering the housing services as well. So they're doing all of the, you know, the back stuff of the housing, the compliance issues, you know, the rent collection and all of that is all really important, but actually making sure that the experience that people have in retirement living is really special and that they enjoy what they do and that we deliver a really good service for our customers.

SPEAKER_01 3:34

And I mean, you've been at backcountry housing and for some time. Is is that um true of the the scheme managers and the staff who are supporting the community?

SPEAKER_00 3:43

I think our scheme managers have have um really developed in recent years. I think they've come a long way in what they do. Um, you know, obviously they've got the day job, they've got to do the health and safety of the building, the compliance of the building, and make sure that everything is running smoothly. But in addition to that, you know, they have to look at um what events we're putting on for customers, what you know, what social activities are we putting on, how do we stimulate customers, how are we making sure that everything that we offer our customers is is different and bespoke to meet their needs.

SPEAKER_01 4:12

I love that Tracy calls them customers, but that's really, really um that sums it up, right? It's all coming across how you're in the care that you have for um for the community. Um, and yeah, I think we used to sort of refer to um to them as tenants in the housing, which to me describes the the house rather than the person living in the house. So yeah, that that's really interesting. And I'm guessing that the you know, like yourself, the um the staff that work there are from the the community and have worked there for some time.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

Yeah, we've got decades of experience. Um our our colleagues are you know they've gone through decades of change and um we've had changes in leadership. There's been lots of uh sector changes um within housing. It I think it's fair to say since Grenville it's gone through huge regulatory changes, um, you know, you've got our WABS law, you've got the consumer standards, um, and it's for us, we're a very values-driven organisation, and it's about being transparent, but being accountable and making sure that you know, whoever we work with in terms of partners, whether that's tech or who, you know, whoever we work with, that we're holding people to account and that we're always doing the right thing for our customers. And yeah, we do use the word customers, and some people like that, some people don't. Some people say actually I'm a resident, some people might say I'm a tenant. You know, there's all sorts of challenge around that. We're all individuals, absolutely. And I think that's the that you know, that is what I love about country housing, is that you know, we do have a very bespoke service for our customers. We're very close to our customers, we get behind the front door of every single customer, and I think that's quite unique. So we know our customers quite well, we know what the needs are, but you know, we don't always get everything right. One of our values is we love to learn, we absolutely do. Um, but I think that at the heart of everything we do is about we care and we do do the right things, and these are really, really important values.

SPEAKER_01 6:03

Yeah. So yeah, and that kind of so can we just wheel back a little bit? Um, so you know, obviously the huge, unspeakable tragedy of uh of Grenfell and and I can't even say a word slow, we don't get in a bit like that about it, but but but thank goodness some good has come out of that, right? So it's really driven um a change for good in in housing. And and and do your residents feel more I mean, can you talk us through the the kind of the impact? I mean, obviously a big disruption, but do the residents feel a little safer now with the I think I think the rate I think the difference with us is our residents have a voice.

SPEAKER_00 6:39

So I think some of the issues that you know have have brought the change in terms of legislation have been that customers didn't have a voice, or they may have felt that they didn't have a voice. I think what what we see within my organisation is our customer, there's lots of scrutiny panels, there's there's various um customer panels, um, from reading panels to you know policy, looking at policies, there's a lot of involvement, and we've got a um really good head of customer voice actually, who is is really strategic in what he does and wants to make sure that we're doing all the right things for customers and that they are involved when and when they want to be. And how how do you engage them then? What does that look like? Is it a coffee morning or talk us through it? Do you know what, Neris? It can be anything. Um, so yeah, I mean it can be as as basic as coffee mornings. It's about having conversations with customers. You know, we've got a lot of intelligent customers with um lots of backgrounds, different backgrounds, and they can build bring those skills to us. They can bring their history, their careers, what they do in their day jobs. You know, people some people are still working in retirement living. You know, I said 55 plus, you know, who retires at 55, not everybody. So we've got lots of customers who have working age, and you know, they can bring that experience and skill to us. And it's important that we listen and we embrace that. You know, in the world of tech, you know, everything's um changing and everything's evolving very quickly at a at a fast pace. And um, and what I want to make sure that we're doing is that we're keeping abreast with that, that we're working with providers to make sure that our customers are getting the best experience from that tech world and whatever that looks like, you know, the day-to-day experiences. Most people have got Alexas or they've got smart plugs, or I know I have, and um, you know, what kind of tech can we use to tap into that to make the best experience for our customers? So that's that's the kind of thing that I'm interested in going forward as well.

SPEAKER_02 8:33

Can we just talk about the individualisation? I love the fact that you get behind the front door, and but yours so that's quite unique, right? And I'm interested in is it is it scalable as a as a as a solution? Because I think we'd all want to think that if we lived in that type of facility, we want to know the people around us, right? But I also want to know the people, you do you talk call them customers for a reason. I just why is that so unique to Black Country and and what are your thoughts on how it might scale across the sector?

SPEAKER_00 8:57

Yeah, I think getting bit I think when I took over retirement living, it was, you know, well, these customers see we we know our customers because we see them in the communal areas. So we know these customers, we know how they live because we see them passing through the corridors and we're talking to them, staff are talking to them. But sometimes what's going on behind the front door and getting behind that front door is so important, it's paramount. And I think what it makes the success of Black Country Housing to do these individual visits. So you're getting behind the front door, you're having those individual conversations. What is it you're looking for? What are your expectations? Are we managing your expectations? What is it we can do differently? You know, we're all about ideas and innovation and what we can do to um to make customer experience better. I think it is scalable in answer to your question. I think you can do that. I make sure that my team go behind every single front door. And, you know, at first, customers are saying, Well, why why do you need you see me in the lounge? Why do you need to get behind my front door? I think it's really important to see what we can do to help you live a much better life. And do you have a story? Give us a story. Oh, I've got loads of stories, loads of stories. What kind of story are you looking for? Are you looking for one in in relation to tech or no?

SPEAKER_01 10:13

Well, what you what you've learned, you know, when you've um uh you know, when you've been in into their their living space, right? Into their life.

SPEAKER_00 10:22

I think sometimes, I think sometimes the persona you see outside the front door is a very different persona to behind the door. I think that's one of the biggest issues. Um, for me, that's one of the eye-openers, is that what you see there might not be the reality of what's going on behind the front door. And sometimes, you know, there can be more vulnerabilities and more help that's required, more support that's needed. And it's and it's admitting that, and it's admitting actually, you know, we've got an aging population, people are getting older, we know this, you know, health services are changing, we know this, we know that, you know, if you call an ambulance, it might not come, you know, straight away like historically they may have done. You know, you can be waiting hours for an ambulance, customers can be waiting hours on the floor, and for me, it's just really important that we have the right um systems and the right tech in place in order so that customers can feel safe, they can feel secure, that they've got that um reassurance that actually if something happens to me that I am going to be okay. Uh you say I talk about a story, um, a recent one. Um I was at I was at the scheme myself, so actually I was there, and you know, a customer pressed her a pendant, uh, which is brilliant because some of them wear them around the wrist, some of them wear them um around the neck, some of them chuck them in a cupboard. So it's about having these honest conversations with people about what do we expect. Um, and this particular uh customer, she had pressed her pendant and she'd gone in and and she'd had a fall, and you know, quite a frail customer in her 90s, uh sitting on the floor, and blood was literally pouring from her. And you know, it's a shocking situation to go in and walk into that. And um, but she'd pressed her pendant, which is like brilliant, in that hour of need. She, you know, we were immediately able to intervene and get that help. Obviously, we called an ambulance, um, as she's pouring with blood, I kid you not. We're trying to get some, you know, um, you know, tea towels and to try and help her. And she's she's sitting there with the blood pouring, and she's like, not that one, don't use that tea towel. Um, you know, so worst, not the best one. Not the one with the you know, so I can still see what you're doing. So uh, you know, but we we got some help and support to her, and I mean she was asking to be picked up and all sorts, and we know we can't do that, and we would never do that, but she was asking to be picked up, and um, but essentially when the ambulance got there and they they did take her in, she had had broken a bone in a neck, uh, you know, so really vulnerable. But luckily, using the technology in the right way and the response in the right way got the result and that intervention, it could have been a very different story.

SPEAKER_01 12:59

You got to spend your time with, you know, that was she was had the greatest need that day, and the technology helped you to spend your and that's what we want.

SPEAKER_00 13:06

And and and and for us as providers, as a housing professional, you know, we need we need to know that we've got A, got the right tech in place, B, that it's reliable, and that it does everything it needs to do at the time it needs to do it. So when a customer presses a pendant, that we have got the response and everything in place to make sure that what we're doing is everything to support that customer's needs, whatever the situation is.

SPEAKER_02 13:33

Um it uses out of what you're saying, the kind of personalization both of the service you provide to customers from technology to the building, the kind of provisions of the services you provide. It's clear that black country housing are really taking that kind of as the first pillar of service provision. I guess if I could ask you to think about what's challenging you in the sector and as an organization right now, because there's lots of pressures in society, there's pressures in the sector. So, what as a as a manager in the in your position, what keeps you awake at night at the minute?

SPEAKER_00 14:00

Oh, there's lots of things that keep me awake at night. Um, I think to be honest, you know, um we've got the cost of living crisis, haven't we, for customers? And that's a big worry in terms of how does that impact them and what does that mean in terms of what we can do as a housing provider? There's obviously lots of changes legislation-wise, uh, in terms of fire safety and all of that. So there's lots of stuff going on which are then impacting budgets. So for me, it's it's about what have we got, what what can we do to improve that, but is that cost effective and how much does that impact us as a housing provider and also then for our customers? So, what can we use that we've already got? What can we improve on? And how does that we we want to make sure that we stay current, we stay innovative, that we're working with the sector moving forward, that we're looking at new technologies. We want to do all of those things, but at the same time, you've got to be mindful of what the costs are of that, what the budgets are for that, and affordability for customers. So, I mean, it's really important. What what I have enjoyed recently is um is we've had Tunsto come out to some of our schemes. Um, some of the tech guys come out to talk about, you know, actually using this to the best standard you could. Do you fully understand what you've got and what it can do? Um, and then the add-ons that you can get. So, you know, if somebody has um has a fall, you can have a fall detection. And if you fall, it will detect that. And that's really, really important for custom some customers, that's really important. So it's about making sure that whatever is new on the market, that we're keeping up to date with that, and that we're then really transparent with our customers about what this what the systems can do and how that can help them because you know them the health might be great today and it can change tomorrow.

SPEAKER_02 15:50

Can we talk a bit about the sense of community, right? So I've got this hypothesis that the NHS and its neighbourhood plans, and I think they're gonna come out to communities and I in in in their heads they've got this kind of tables out in the street with bunting, a bit like VE Day celebrations, right? And that we're gonna have this, and I don't think that reflects the social fabric in our society today, right? But I do think in some of the housing schemes and the ones I've seen for myself at Black Country Housing, there is still that sense of absolute community and there's support, there's an ecosystem there where actually without and with your staff's intervention, there's activities and there's kind of curated content for them to consume. Talk to us a little bit about how I mean, because that that's not something that happens by itself, right? That's quite a big undertaking, right? So talk us a little bit about some of your your efforts personally and as an organization to do that.

SPEAKER_00 16:35

So there's there's lots of this is the thing, there's lots of work that goes on behind the scenes that perhaps people don't see. Um, one of the things that we want to make sure is that we're combating loneliness and we want to make sure that you know that if people come into our scheme, you've always got a cohort of people who want to do things and they're the first in the queue to say, yes, we can do this and we can do that. But what about those people who don't come out and those people who don't want to engage? And it's about making sure that we reach out to those people and make sure that we're capturing their customer voice and their needs and and looking at making a really comprehensive events calendar. That's not just, you know, at the at the beginning of the year where you can say, okay, we've got some new budget and we can do this, but that we actually plan and we execute that in a really clever way to make sure that we're tapping into all sorts of things. You know, we're a really cultural, diverse organization. We want to make sure that we are capturing all of those things that we can do with customers and bring in new experiences. I think it's really important that we bring in new experiences and we have done that. There's lots of different things we've done. We've had steel drums, we've had Caribbean nights, um, you know, we've had curry tasting sessions and you know, we have um LGBT for, you know, for events for those um people in the communities. And sometimes we met with opposition, and sometimes customers are saying, why are we doing that in retirement living? Why do we need to do that? But I think we need to be really aware of our environment, we need to be really aware of the people we're attracting to our schemes. We want to make sure that we're that we are um an inclusive organization of people's needs, and we are a very diverse organization. We're in the Midlands, we're in the West Midlands, we're Black Country Housing, you know. So we want to make sure that we're capturing all of that. And I think there's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes, capturing that customer voice, learning from it. So we've done this and we we've thought about this. We get we have informative sessions, we'll get people to come in. We've had public health come in and they've done all sorts of things regarding um, you know, they've had cancer talks, uh, whether that's for men, we've had that for men, we've had it for ladies, and it's really important. We I have um I have like service charge meetings, but I talk about future proofing, I talk about future planning. You know, are we prepared for when you know the worst comes? Do we have wills? Have we got pairs of attorney? Are we doing all the right things to equip us because then it makes us feel more secure and safe that when anything happens, that we've we've done all of the right things?

SPEAKER_01 19:09

You're giving me goose thumbs, Tracy, because I just think there's so much care and thought that's that's gone into all of that.

SPEAKER_00 19:16

I think the housing sector has changed over the over the you know the last, I don't know, how many years, but it it has changed. It's definitely changed, you know, people's expectations. People talk about COVID and say that things changed post-COVID, and perhaps it did. You know, there has definitely been lots of change, and none of it is easy, but I think if you if you've got the right sort of attitude, the right heart, and you care about people and you care about what happens to people, and you want to make it so so it is personal. And I can and so people come into our schemes. Mark, you've been into um, you've been to Brayburn, you've been to Dufton, and you know, you have felt it. I think you walk in and you feel that sense of community, and it's it's just got a very unique feel to it.

SPEAKER_02 20:01

I think I said to you at Brayburn, I thought I could just walk in there and I felt at home, right? I felt like and that so it's personal to me because my grand both my grandparents lived in schemes, and and I just felt like it was a welcoming community. It's hard to it's hard to actually put into words, right, as you walk into a building from the scheme manager's welcome to just the kind of way the buildings are organised, but also then the people that you meet. And I think that the sense of community that you've built there is has been something that I know from talking to some of your residents, it's it's something that they're really kind of kick, it's what sets black country housing apart from other places they might live. Which bits are you most proud of are the things you've created in those communities? Because a lot of this has been a lot of personal energy and industry from you, right? To get this off the ground. What are you most proud of?

SPEAKER_00 20:41

What am I most proud of? I think I I think I feel like I put our retirement living on the map. Um, I'm not saying that it never was on the map, but I think with our scheme managers, I genuinely believe that I have created and developed them to be better at what they do and to do that and to to make to invest in them as people. Um, I think a lot of this comes from emotional intelligence and having those really honest conversations. And I've had those honest conversations with colleagues, you know, there were colleagues who'd worked there for decades, um, and actually they were doing a brilliant job. But I what could you do that was just making it different, making it better, and investing in our customers and the model of what we do is is you know, we changed the model of what we do in retirement living. So scheme managers are literally at the heart of everything. So whether it's a rent account, whether it's antisocial behaviour.

SPEAKER_02 21:36

Antisocial behaviour in your schemes.

SPEAKER_00 21:38

We do, we do. Wow. Um, we have neighborhood disputes, um, and we have people who don't always get along, and we have to manage that, and that is the sector of housing. It's like a big family, right?

SPEAKER_01 21:48

It's no different from my house house. We have antisocial behaviour, and we all love each other.

SPEAKER_02 21:55

But it's a bit I guess if that's my point about this community, right? It's a microcosm of the community. And what we're trying to achieve as a society as a whole, to organise our care more throughout the ecosystem of the community. And you're doing that through the ecosystem of your homes, I guess.

SPEAKER_00 22:09

And what I what I love about it is our pe is our people in retirement living, they stay with us until they either go into care, and that's the next step for them, or if sadly they pass away. So we don't get many people leave because they want to leave. And that's the measure of success right there. So I'm proud of that. But I think that's because it comes from a very values-driven organisation, and that starts from you know our board and uh our exec team, and that is cascaded down into all levels of staff who work within the team. So yeah, it's up and down, of course it does because it's about listening to the colleague voice as well.

SPEAKER_02 22:49

So then you've obviously created these community events and different things going on. So in that space, what perhaps what's the most unexpected thing, or the thing you in you've enjoyed the most? Or I'm sure there's one or two stories there. What's the thing that you've created that you kind of weren't expecting to be doing when you joined Black Country Housing?

SPEAKER_00 23:07

Oh, there's lots of things. Um, in terms of events, um, I mean, I've I've done bangro dancing with my customers. So at one of my schemes, we had a bangrodancing session. Um, again, to to just bring some sort of culture and diverse change into the schemes. So that was probably one of my um craziest moments where I was, you know, sort of um one minute I'm dealing with arrears and rent accounts, and the next minute I'm sort of bangrodancing with the customers, and and that's the kind of difference. I mean, we we've got our own um choir. So we've got our Christmas, right? So we'll talk about Christmas. I think um, so I invited you to that, didn't I? Which was uh so what we do is we go around to all of our schemes and we sing.

SPEAKER_02 23:51

Wait, wait, wait. It's just that's so we that's not how you sold it to me. What you said, what Tracy said to me was, Do you want to come to the scheme and we're gonna have a carol singing? So I thought, oh, there's gonna be a local church or a school coming in. And when we got there, I was one of the singers. That's what Tracy.

SPEAKER_00 24:06

Brilliant. So what we do, and um, you know, and we we tell it like it is, and they ask for this. I mean, you know, there's a there's a part of me that thinks, do they ask for it because it's quite amusing? Um, because it's entertaining for a good hour. Um, but you know, I say to the scheme managers, are you sure they're asking for this? And I say to the customers, are you asking for this? Because this is what my uh scheme manager is telling me. But essentially, we we have a bit of a giggle for an hour. Um, we we have sing songs and we invite people. I mean, you know, dressing up with Christmas jumpers and singing the the black country uh 12 days of Christmas is an experience in itself. I invite you to that, Neris. Next time, I invite you to come this year, both of you again, to one of the schemes. We'll pick a scheme, you can come down and see it for itself. Um, but yeah, that's I mean, that's just a bit of fun and customers love it. So we we do all sorts. I mean, it's so varied, there's a lot of variety in what we do.

SPEAKER_02 24:59

Should we talk about the future of officers?

SPEAKER_00 25:02

Talk about the future, yes.

SPEAKER_02 25:03

Uh so how obviously housing technology is one angle we've talked a little bit about as we go along. I'm interested in your views on that, but also the future of the sustainability of schemes and organizations like Black Country Housing. So, what are your thoughts just generally about how that type of housing and in our communities, like I said before, I think it's pretty unique. I think we should have more of it and we should encourage it actually in different parts of uh the country. But what's your thoughts on on that part?

SPEAKER_00 25:26

Well, obviously, I'm gonna say it's great. As uh as I look, you know, as I look after retirement living, I'm gonna obviously champion that. I think um retirement living is really important. We've got an ageing population and you know, people want to downsize from their homes. You know, you've got a one person maybe living in a three or four-bed home that actually can't manage that home, can't manage the stairs, feels quite isolated, feels quite lonely, might have some health issues in that, might have some disability issues, um, can't manage the garden. How do I manage the garden? Cleaning is another aspect. Um, you know, and loneliness, I mean, it's a huge thing. I mean, the the NHS talk about loneliness and age UK talk about loneliness and the impact of that on people as they get older. And I think it's really, really important. What we see is a lot of people who want to downsize and move into a scheme like a retirement living. The beauty of retirement living is you've got your own front door, you can come and go as you please, it's very independent. Um, yes, we put events on, yes, we have communal spaces, but the reality is you do come and go as you please. It's you know, you've got your own front door, your own apartment, which is wonderful. The best of both worlds, on your doorstep, absolutely, and you know, and I think, and you know, I am gonna say this, but I do think Black Country House and have got a fantastic offer for that, and I think it's to be embraced. And the fact that we have got successful schemes that are, you know, re-let really quickly, we've got really good, healthy waiting lists, um, just is a testament to the services that we offer. And so long may that continue. I would like to see it develop, I'd like to see it grow and get bigger and expand into different boroughs. Um, but obviously you'd have to ask our strategic uh board whether that's the plan for the future.

SPEAKER_02 27:17

What about waiting lists, right? I haven't I hadn't really thought of that, right? Is that a big problem in the sector? Is that is is it um well?

SPEAKER_00 27:24

I mean, what we do is we have a nominations agreement with the local authority. So we can um we go to the local authority 50% enough from nominations, and then the remaining 50% we can go direct to our waiting list. So waiting lists are a huge issue. Um, especially in general needs, they can be a huge issue because um obviously we've got a housing crisis, there's lots and lots of people, and there's not enough homes, and this is obviously well documented. People live in longer, of course, yeah, and people are living longer, and so the local authorities are doing what they need to do in terms of trying to get people to downsize. Um, we're really lucky, I think, because we've got attractive schemes, we have got a lot of people who are interested. You know, you get families, there's a lot of word of mouth, you know. Or my auntie lived there, or my my nan lived there, so and so there's a lot of word of mouth. However, however, I have had challenges at times, believe it or not, in in um some of the and Brayburn was one of them, interestingly. And you know, that's a really beautiful scheme, it's in a nice location, um, it's affordable, there's all the the right qualities to it, but you have to go out and market these skins as well and make sure that you're advertising and that you're doing all the right things to make sure that because you want to house the right people in your schemes, you want to make sure that you're, you know, you're attracting really um really good customers who you know want to live in that kind of environment because it isn't for everybody. You know, some people might say, actually, that's not for me. Um, but luckily we we have a have a good uh waiting list.

SPEAKER_02 28:59

And when we think about technology then in the future, I mean, what I think people would expect us to be talking about in 2026 is analogue to digital, pr as as kind of dry a subject as that is. However, you guys have already been quite ahead of that curve in in your scheme. But can quite aside from the kind of drivers of the the change in technology in the market, you've done it because it's I think it's the right thing for your residents and you you were really early adopters of digital solutions well before the rest of the sector. So I'm interested in your kind of thoughts of the future state of the possible, right? And you know, connected smart home and and uh as you get this younger cohort coming through, how are you going to make the technology technology kind of meet them where they're at in your schemes and how what people's expectations are when they join?

SPEAKER_00 29:40

And that's about educating people, isn't it? What's out there, looking and talking to tech providers. So, what is the innovation that's coming over the horizon? What is it that's um available for customers in terms of connecting to their current smart appliances in their properties? Because a lot of people have already got this technology, lots of lots of people have got uh smart plugs and Alexa's and all sorts of stuff in their properties. So it's now looking at what's the tech world going to bring to add to that, where they can use it through their current technology, and it's about making sure that we try and do that, but market it correctly. Is it affordable? Is it achievable? What can it do? Um, and just educate people. So it is about bringing the innovation in in-house and having the tech world come in to talk to us about what's out there, you know, in terms of smart watches, what can the smartwatch do? Can that link to the technology? Is there anything we can do to evolve and develop that? And so it is about just you know keeping those really fluid conversations out with and that makes it more affordable, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_01 30:43

You know, if families have bought an Alexo or a uh, you know, a watch or something like that, to be able to, you know, use that um uh you know is it makes it really sustainable. You know, you don't you don't want to pay for things twice, do you? Well people can't afford to, no, absolutely not.

SPEAKER_00 30:58

Definitely not, and it's about making the best use of what you currently have. So if you've got something that is an Alexa and that can then link up to something in terms of technology to then that's and then if there's somebody who lives in the um the scheme that knows how to, you know, link these things together, then how lovely, right?

SPEAKER_01 31:15

That just making the best of that community. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:18

So what does the future scheme look like that you might have in b in black country? Yeah, give me a paint me a little picture of you know some of the things you might want to do in the future that you can't do today or that you you know when heaven forbid when you get old enough to retire into a black country for property, Tracy, what would what would it need to look like?

SPEAKER_00 31:33

Well, I would want to make sure that I'd got reliable services that so if if and when my health changes, or you know, if I've got a loved one who's living in retirement, living that if if and when their health changes, that you are that you are using the right equipment, that is reliable, that it's it's resourceful, um, and that it's sustainable going forward, and we're making that we're making sure that we're doing all of the right things in terms of the tech that we offer to customers. Affordability is massive. Making sure that it's reliable and affordable are the biggest two things for me. Um, what do I want retirement living schemes to look like? I um obviously we're changing and modernising the schemes as we're going along, and and I've done quite a bit of modernisation work. Um good lighting. Yeah, good lighting, yeah. So, like we one of my schemes, I've got a little library, we've got beauty rooms. Um, we want to make sure that we've got as much as we can have within that community to help people so it it feels that they've got all the help and support. So actually, if I don't feel very well, but I do want to get my hair cut, I can go to our little beauty room and I can I can use that hairdresser that's there, I can get Croopaday in that particular room, we've got laundry facilities, we've got all of the things that um that people would want. You know, I want I want a quiet area, I want um, I want an afternoon of games and fun. We we've got that in the the communal rooms, but actually we've got quiet rooms and quiet spaces for people.

SPEAKER_01 33:06

Um and it's one, I mean, there's the things people need, right? But you're actually talking about the things that people want, which is um yeah, fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 33:14

So there is that. There is about need and there is about want. Um, but we want to make them attractive, we want to make our schemes an attractable offer so people look and go, wow, I didn't realise that you did that as well. That's really interesting for me to, yeah. So it's just about what else do people want? And it's listening to that customer voice. What else do people want at their schemes? You know, we want to create nice green areas, green spaces. I want to get better with environment, I want to get better with waste. What are we doing in terms of waste? Um, one of my recent things is we're looking at becoming waste ambassadors, um, which is really, you know, working with the local authority. I want to partner with local authorities better and do um bigger pieces of work with them. And the biggest one that I'm doing at the moment, I suppose, is about recycling and waste collections are really important. Um, and and what can we can do to help the environment. And we all know that there's been changes in legislation in terms of waste and refuge and all of that, and we want to make sure that we're doing all the right things. So, yeah, so it's it's about that as well, creating better green spaces, a better environment so that people feel that they're you know they've got different spaces that they can go to if they don't want to mix in the larger communal areas. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 34:30

I'm sure you're not short of feedback, right, from your residents and members and and uh customers. But what's what's your favourite kind of st story or bit of feedback you've received from a member, uh a member or one of their families that kind of keeps you keeps you when you when you're struggling with kind of keeping focus when things get tough in the day job of providing the service that you do?

SPEAKER_00 34:49

Yeah, so obviously we do get feedback, we encourage feedback, whether that's positive or negative. Um I think we're really good at sort of you know asking customers if they want to make a complaint that they can do that. But luckily, I think we have lots of positive feedback as well. So we do get complaints, but there's lots of positive comments.

SPEAKER_02 35:08

So I guess Tracy, one of the things that you must see in the tapestry of these communities that you create is people from all different walks of life. What what are your thoughts on that? How do you how do you make that a welcoming space for all these people from different parts of society?

SPEAKER_00 35:19

It starts with the scheme manager, it starts at the interview process and it starts at the application process. And so you come through the doors and it's who you meet and how warm and inviting that look, what does that look like? Um, and then obviously there's you you meet other customers and you take a walk around the building and you take the time and the care and you demonstrate this is what we are as an organization, and that's really important for customers to see that at the very, very beginning. We get lots of customers come in with lots and lots of different skills. Um, so you get some customers who say, I just want to be out in the garden, I want to be digging that garden up, I want to be planting and I want to be doing this. And and what are you gonna do, Black Country Housing, to help me do that? And you know, we can do that, we'll let you do it, give you the key to the shed. We can we can buy some you know equipment for for people to, you know, if they want to plant some plants, or we can do all of that. So, you know, we we embrace that because we want people to feel that they can continue doing that. So if you've moved from a home and you did enjoy gardening, but you didn't enjoy the vast garden because that was just a little bit too much, but you do want to enjoy potterying around in the garden, we welcome that. And so we will embrace the opportunity for customers to do things like that. Um, I think it's always trying to think outside the box and what else can we bring as a new experience for customers, and then making sure that we um translate that to all of our schemes. So when one scheme does something that's really, really good and that's actually gone really well, then actually is that going to work at other schemes and can we try that at some of our other schemes? Um, so yeah, that's yeah, that's what we do.

SPEAKER_02 36:56

Thank you so much for coming to talk to us. Um, I think it's been really insightful. I either need to get on the waiting list for Black Country Housing. I don't know if I'm old enough just yet, or I need to go and work at Black Country Housing because both in both senses it sounds like an incredible organization. But I think that's what, yeah. So thank you so much for coming in to the house. You're welcome.

SPEAKER_01 37:12

Well, thank you for asking me. Thank you very much. So, reflecting on that conversation with Tracy, what was the home truth?

SPEAKER_02 37:20

I think the thing that struck me was the degree of personalization in that community, right? The extents they go to to make sure that it's a welcoming space for the individual and the network they create around them, and how as we think about other models, everyone's thinking about community-based care, community-based services, and getting closer to the home. What can we learn from what's already happening every day in housing, right?

SPEAKER_01 37:39

Yeah.