Code of Conduct

Involved Customer

Code of Conduct

An involved customer must:

Promote and represent the interest of Platform Housing Group customers within their scheme, neighbourhood or community. Ensure the rights of customers are being met, and they have a voice.

Represent and act on the majority view of Platform Housing Group customers.

Ensure that the views of residents from minority groups are also recognised.
Where needed, work towards improving relations between Platform Housing Group and customers.
Where possible, work with and meet Platform Housing Group staff and other involved customers to discuss issues.

Code of conduct

An involved customer must:

Treat all customers and staff equally, with dignity and respect.
Ensure that all customers can share their view regardless of their race, colour, nationality, sexuality, age, gender, marital status, disability or religious beliefs.
Be aware of the varying cultures and lifestyles within the community and promote a fair and equal culture.
Be non-party political or sectarian when acting as a representative.
Only speak on behalf of and act for customers after prior consultation with them and gaining their agreement.
Not coerce, bully or force their own views or opinions on other customers.
During customer meetings, allow all other involved customers an equal voice and do not use meetings to pursue a personal agenda or address personal issues.
Be objective and open minded, and when assessing a complaint or example of poor service ensure to take all information into account before acting.
Not share any personal or sensitive information about Platform Housing Group or other customers.
Not take part in any behaviour that may bring Platform Housing Group or its stakeholders into disrepute.
Not be in breach of their tenancy agreement.

(There are a range of ways that a customer can be in breach of their tenancy, with some breaches considered more serious than others. We would like to reassure you that we would take a fair and proportionate approach to enforcing this clause and would assess a breach on a case-by-case basis and communicate our response with the individual involved customer. Any involved customer, who has action taken against them in relation to a breach of tenancy and their involvement role, can raise a formal complaint if they are dissatisfied with our handling of the matter).

Platform Housing Group will:

Work with involved customers to improve relations between Platform Housing Group and customers.
Meet and discuss issues on a regular basis with involved customers.
Work with involved customers to ensure that customers are kept aware of what is happening and provide information to them on a regular basis.
Support and fund, where appropriate, involved customers to attend training courses and seminars in order to gain further knowledge of customer involvement, wider housing issues and housing legislation.

Additional Points

It must be remembered that as an involved customer you are volunteering your time, whilst you may receive rewards, they are not payment for your work or time. You may claim for legitimate out of pocket expenses, such as travel costs, when attending Platform Housing Group meetings. These costs must be agreed in advance by the Customer/Community Engagement Officer.

Platform Housing Group will pay for training and costs to attend courses. This is subject to prior approval and money being available.

As an involved customer you are not expected to put yourself in potentially dangerous situations or carry out the tasks of Platform Housing staff. You are the important link between your community and your landlord, with the aim of improving communication and the quality of life for you and other customers.

While carrying out your role as an involved customer your image may be captured in various photographs and videos. By signing below, you consent to them being used for other marketing and publicity-related purposes and in other Platform Housing Group publications. You understand that they may be published on the Group’s Website, Facebook Page, Twitter Account or elsewhere. You also understand that:

Your images will be held in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 / the General Data Protection Regulation 2018.
The images of yourself captured in the video recordings and/or photographs will be the copyright of Platform Housing Group.
The images will be stored/used for a period of up to two years, after which time they will be destroyed.
You can ask Platform Housing Group to stop using your images at any time, in which case they will not be used in future publications but may continue to appear in publications already in circulation.
In addition to the consent sought in this Code of Conduct we will always seek consent from customers at any individual event or meeting before taking photos or recording video footage, regardless of the consent provided individually through this Code of Conduct.

Any involved customer who does not abide by the code of conduct can be removed from the Involvement Register and will cease to be classed as an involved customer. Likewise, if as an involved customer you feel you are not being treated fairly by Platform Housing Group, you can bring the matter to the attention of the Customer and Community Engagement Team, or if appropriate, via the complaint procedure.