Setting up a Tenants Group

What is a tenants and residents group?

A tenants and residents group is a group of people living in the same area who get together to do something about their homes and the area they live in. Council tenants, private tenants and people who have bought their houses can be members. Our organisation is funded to work with groups where there is a majority of council tenants on the group. If you are a group of home-owners or non-council tenants your Ward Co-ordinator from the council can help you set up a residents group, click here for contact details of Ward Co-ordinators.

Why set up a tenants and residents group?

It is hard to change things by yourself - but by getting together in a group you have a stronger voice. You can really make a difference. There are over 85 tenants and residents groups in Newcastle. They have the right to take part in decisions about their homes and communities.

Many tenants and residents groups have brought about big improvements to their estates by coming together and getting things done. Tenants and residents have the right to be involved in the way our homes and estates are run. By forming a group you can have a say in what happens on your estate.

What can a tenants and residents group do?

You can work with the council and Your Homes Newcastle (YHN) to improve your homes and estates.

You can have a real say in decisions about spending money on housing improvements.

You can have a say in housing policy - and make sure that tenants get the best deal.

You can go on estate inspections with council and YHN staff to point out the things that need doing on the estate and discuss issues of estate maintenance, repairs and improvements with housing staff in informal meetings and at formal committees.

You can do an estate survey - a door-to-door survey of what people want and feed your ideas into the council.

You can campaign for something - like new windows, or other improvements to your council homes, or better lighting, a children's playground, or other improvements to the environment.

You can talk to the people who make decisions - and make sure they listen to your views. You can have your say in all the decisions affecting your estate - and make sure you get the service you want. You can also help build up some community spirit in your neighbourhood.

Is there a group in my area?

Contact us to find out if there is a group near you. If there is, we can help you get in touch.

Help to set up a new group

If there isn’t a group in your area you could talk with other people on your estate and find out if there is enough interest to set up a tenants and residents group. We can give you independent advice and help to set up your Tenants & Residents group with a constitution. We have lots of experience of helping groups campaign for the things they want. We can help you produce some leaflets and publicity and come and talk to you and your neighbours about setting up a group.

You can contact other Tenants & Residents groups in your area through us. Other tenants group members started off just like you and know exactly what you are feeling. They can really help you out.

If you are a group of home-owners or non-council tenants your Ward Coordinator from the council can help you set up a residents group, click here for contact details of Ward Co-ordinators.

Adopting a Constitution

A constitution is a written set of rules that explain how your tenants group will operate. It should explain how everyone in the area covered by your group can get involved and have their say. It should also set out how finances raised by the group will be spent and accounted for.

The Federation has a model constitution that can be adapted for use by tenants and residents groups in Newcastle. For more information about this contact us.

Getting Funding

Tenants Fund

The Tenants Fund is a grant available to groups to cover their running costs for example printing, stationary, travel and childcare costs. Groups are eligible if they represent council tenants and address housing and related issues. The Federation administers the fund on behalf of the council. Application pack and information leaflet.

Ward Committee

Your group may be eligible for a grant from your local Ward Committee if you are going to provide community based activities such as social or environmental projects. For more information contact your local Community Co-ordinator at the Civic Centre on (0191) 232 8520.

Community Empowerment Fund (CEF)

The CEF gives grants to help community groups get involved in making decisions about their area. For more information contact CEF on (0191) 230 5180 or visit their website.

Other funding

If your group is looking for a grant for a particular project Newcastle Council for Voluntary Service (CVS) can help you find sources of funding. For more information contact the Funding Advice Officer on (0191) 232 7445.

The Funding Adviser at Newcastle City Council also gives funding advice to groups. You can contact the adviser directly on (0191) 211 5834.

Training

The Federation offers a variety of training sessions and courses to tenants and residents groups in Newcastle, usually free of charge. These include sessions on how to organise, managing group finances and representing your community.

All our training is provided in an informal, straightforward way. We can arrange training sessions for individual groups in their own areas. Alternatively we might arrange training at a central location in Newcastle and invite several groups along.

For more information about training please contact us.

Tenants Action Pack

The Federation is currently producing an action pack for all tenants & residents groups in Newcastle organising to take up housing and related issues. This loose-leaf pack is a clear and simple guide to starting up and organising your group. It also includes a wealth of practical tips and ideas for getting your message across.

Copies of the pack will be available free of charge to any tenants & residents group in Newcastle. (There is a charge for groups outside of Newcastle) Simply contact us to get your copy.

Help with Publicity

We help groups produce publicity and information on housing related issues such as posters, leaflets, newsletters and so on. We have a photocopier which can be used for smaller print runs of publicity and can also help arrange more complicated print jobs with a local printer.

We also have a substantial library on housing and related issues which tenants groups are welcome to use by prior appointment.

Contact us for more information.

Information

Providing information to tenants groups in Newcastle is an important part of the Federation’s work.

Tenants News

We keep all groups informed about the latest developments in housing and other relevant issues through occasional Briefing Sheets and our newsletter ‘Tenants News’. It is produced every 2 months and sent to all Tenants & Residents groups in the city.

Tenants News also goes to councillors, housing offices, libraries and voluntary and community organisations in the Newcastle area.

Topics covered during the last year include articles about the Government’s decent home standard, the launch of Your Homes Newcastle and the work of the Federation’s 3 working groups

‘ Tenants News’ also keeps readers up to date with:

• News from individual tenants groups
• Information about training courses for tenants representatives
• Fed Exec Committee decisions
• Useful dates for diaries

Click here to view and/or download any of the last 5 issues of Tenants News

Federation Information Leaflet

Basic information about the role of the Federation is contained in our information leaflet and this information can be made available in different formats by contacting us.

Annual Report

A summary of the work we have done over the year leading up to our AGM is contained in our Annual Report. You can download or print off a copy of our last Annual Report.

Federation Poster

A copy of our publicity poster can be downloaded.