Fair access to our services

Close up of two people, in conversation, sitting at a table.

Our customers are central to our approach to service delivery. 

We want to support all customers to have fair access to our services so that they can successfully sustain their tenancies and get the best from Golding Homes as their landlord. We want to work with you to improve the service we deliver and tailor our approach to meet diverse needs.

A tailored approach may include signposting, giving advice, guidance and/or making referrals (where appropriate), to help customers with information and access to specialist service providers to meet their specific needs.

Communications

When communicating with customers we’ll:

  • Provide opportunities for you to tell us about particular communication needs and preferences, during our tenancy sign up process, tenancy audits or other contact with us.
  • Ensure our services are accessible, and that the accessibility is publicised.
  • Support customers to use online services.
  • Provide communication in accessible formats.
  • Support requests or a need for the presence of an advocate or other appropriate third party representative.

Accessible formats

We’re aware that customers should get information in a way that works for you. We’ll provide information in accessible formats including:

  • Large print
  • Braille
  • Audio
  • Another language
  • Easy read

Our website features the ReachDeck Toolbar. This can be accessed by clicking on the icon  accessibility icon featured top right on the home page.  The toolbar gives you the ability to customise the site to suit your needs, including changing colours, contrast levels, fonts, and font size. You can also navigate the site using keyboard or speech recognition software and listen using a screen reader. Our full website accessibility statement is available here.

Responding to special needs and vulnerabilities

Some customers may have special needs or vulnerabilities that make interacting with us a challenge. We’ll do what we can to provide a better customer service experience for these customers.

  • We’ll conduct a standardised assessment to determine eligibility and identify individual needs for OPAL (Older Person Active Lives) customers.
  • We recognise some customers may face additional barriers to maintaining rent payments and we will act sensitively to listen and respond to provide support or signposting needed for customers to maximise their income, manage their budget, and pay rent and other priority household bills.
  •  We’ll check on a customer's tenancy for any recorded needs which should be considered when delivering our repair standard, for example if more time is needed for the appointment or a customer requires more time to answer the door.
  • We’ll make sure a female operative or female representative of Golding attends an appointment with a victim or survivor of domestic abuse or as requested.
  • We’re mindful that some customer behaviours may be related to individual vulnerabilities. We’ll try to engage alongside relevant support services and carers where necessary, especially when responding to anti-social behaviour (ASB) issues. When considering the most appropriate response, we’ll always balance the safety and well-being of neighbouring customers and colleagues with the well-being of the vulnerable customer. 

More information on our Fair Access Policy is available here.