During the 1990s, Government policy and funding offers meant that the management of almost half of the UK’s social housing stock was transferred over to ALMOs, or Arms Length Management Organisations.

But since the funding stopped, many councils began to question whether this setup allowed the best value and services for their residents.

Like many councils, Newcastle City Council was considering taking back control of their housing stock. Following current guidance and good practice, they decided to run a Test of Opinion first, to check if residents’ views were aligned.

Social Engine’s expertise in designing and running rigorous independent consultations meant we were ideally placed to deliver this test of opinion on Newcastle’s behalf.

Engagement plan

We devised a bespoke engagement plan to meet the client’s needs. They wanted to ensure that details of the proposal reached as many residents as possible, increasing the quality and validity of the research. We wanted to ensure maximum trust and transparency for both decision makers and the residents they serve.

To achieve this, we used a range of channels – including postal, face to face, telephone and online – along with frequent invitations to participate.

We provided information that was accessible and objective, and ensured that the survey was balanced and as short as possible for the sake of simplicity and to help drive completion rates.

Dynamic monitoring of demographics

During the response gathering phase, we monitored uptake using our synchronisation script (see chart, above) which collates responses from all channels, while also monitoring key demographic data.

This enables us to track response rates from different groups and ensure that we are gathering a diverse and representative data set. Staying on top of these stats means we can course-correct where needed to ensure we focus on targeting under-represented groups.

Objective analysis

Ensuring a high level of confidence in the quality of our research, means that data analysis must be objective and balanced.

In the case of Newcastle’s test of opinion, there was a clear majority of more than 80% in favour, which meant that councillors were able to move forwards with their decision in the knowledge that all types of residents’ had had their voices heard.