Date:
This April, Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT) is making big changes by updating its housing and finance systems. The systems will help to improve the overall experience for residents.
The project started a couple of years ago when we asked residents and colleagues about what they needed from the new systems.
Residents were important when choosing the new systems. They met with companies and shared their thoughts, which helped us to decide.
For the past year, we've been preparing the new systems to start using them. This meant figuring out the best ways to work, testing the systems, and training our teams.
After we start, we still have a lot of work to do to create a solid set of rules and ways of doing things. We plan to improve this over time with the help of residents.
What this means for residents?
From 03 April, for the first few days, the teams you interact with will be working manually as we close down the old systems and transfer core information to the new ones. So, it may take a little longer to deal with queries.
The teams will still have access to essential information in the old systems and will continue to process rent payments. Once the new systems are up and running, we will make sure information from this time is added.
The new systems will introduce more automation and processes which will improve residents’ experience.
We’re grateful for your patience during this period of adjustment as teams get used to the changes.
What happens next?
In response to feedback from residents, we are also launching an online portal (MyJRHT) in the coming months.
This portal will enable residents to carry out many activities online such as paying rent, reporting tenancy changes to us, and logging housing applications. We understand some residents prefer to call and speak to a member of the team, so our telephone helpline will still be open.
We're already planning what comes next, like handling service charge details, keeping track of property information, and recording repair requests.
We will provide a further update in May.