A day in the life of a tenancy relations officer

One of the most regular staff contacts you have with us is likely to be with a tenancy relations officer (TRO).

We have 15 of them based around Neath Port Talbot, each one with their own ‘patch’ often spread across several communities. They are the go-to person for any tenancy related queries and are on hand to support you in your home.

We caught up with two of them, Natalie and Tegan to find out a bit more about the role. Here’s what Natalie had to say:
“The job is really varied, and it may be a cliché, but every day is different! The main purpose of the role is to build strong relationships with our tenants, making sure they feel supported and able to sustain their tenancies with us.”

Tegan agrees:
“I love the variety of work we do. It could be anything from making sure someone has settled into their new home, working with partner agencies to ensure our tenants feel supported or dealing with challenges such as anti-social behaviour.

We also enjoy getting out and about, it’s really important for us to be visible in our communities. It’s great to chat to residents so we build relationships and find that’s a better way to find out what help individuals or the wider community may need.”

Natalie stresses the importance of working with other agencies:
“Something really key to our role is the wide range of partner agencies we work with that allow us to support our tenants. These include the police, mental health providers, local food banks, women’s aid, social services as well as our own financial inclusion team and intensive housing management team. It’s all about providing as much support to our tenants as and when they need it.”

Natalie has worked in housing for 20 years and talks about what she enjoys:
“I really enjoy meeting people from all walks of life and housing gives you such a variety.

Tegan, agrees:
“We always try and build a strong relationship with all our tenants, life can be challenging so we are empathetic and
supportive when things get tough.

Something which can cause real stress in our communities is anti-social behaviour which presents itself in many forms. It could be noise nuisance such as loud music or late-night parties, people having a disregard for our residents and communities which can then lead to neighbour disputes.

Sometimes other factors and complexities play a part so in lots of cases we have to work with partner agencies to ensure the right support is in place for the people involved, so things can get better.

Communication is key, as is managing expectations, as sometimes things take time to resolve.”

Natalie talks about problem solving, which is the approach we always take when issues arise:
“Often cases can be easy to solve – once we just asked someone to turn their music down as they weren’t aware it was causing a problem to their neighbours. They were very apologetic about it.

“Dealing with people and their homes means sometimes problems arise and we have to have challenging conversations to deal with difficult and complicated situations.

“This can be frustrating for people, but our aim is always for our tenants to have homes where they can thrive and be a part of a community they feel proud of.”

The job is worthwhile for Tegan:
“It’s when you make visits to people who have just moved into one of our homes. We visit after six weeks and then after eight months to make sure they are settling in okay and to offer any help they need to sustain their tenancy.

Seeing how having a stable roof over someone’s head can transform their life is amazing and it’s moments like this that make the job really rewarding.”

Natalie agrees:
“We have the ability to change someone’s life and that’s quite humbling. I remember helping a gentleman move from a first floor flat to one on the ground floor. He had mobility issues and found it difficult to get out and about. This in turn affected his mental health.

Moving him to a ground floor flat was life changing for him – he found it easier to get around, his health improved, and he was really thankful for his new flat. It’s cases like that that really do make you smile.”

The final word goes to Tegan:
“It’s the people you meet in our communities and the positive difference that we can make to people’s lives that really make this job so rewarding.”