Camden Council has taken radical steps to improve its apology process to social housing tenants. This shift was made following criticism from the housing ombudsman. The council ceased the use of the phrase “We are sorry you felt the need to complain” in September, aligning its practices with recommendations aimed at fostering a more genuine and accountable approach to resident concerns.
The move to change the apology language follows a recommendation made in May this year by housing ombudsman Richard Blakeway. As you may recall, this report was released last November. Blakeway condemned Camden Council’s “defensive” response to complaints. He explained that the earlier language seemed disingenuous and poorly placed the onus on the residents. According to Blakeway, such phrasing “put the responsibility on residents for taking action, instead of the council,” which undermined the council’s accountability.
These amendments are the result of a four-month investigation into Camden Council’s social housing policy. Our investigation reveals the pattern of repeated bias discrimination failures in their services. In 2023, the UK government’s social housing regulator carried out a national inquiry. From this, they established that Camden Council had deliberately ignored dangerous fire hazards in its crumbling housing stock, as a result, endangering its tenants. With the current crisis, people are even more unhappy with their government. Yet, it has recently dipped below the averages in both London and the national average.
Camden Council claims that contrarian as it is, it has recently recorded a dramatic uptick in customer satisfaction among residents. The council expects more complaints to keep coming in, mainly because of their social housing, which continues to fall into disrepair.
To address the shortcomings highlighted in Blakeway’s report, Camden Council has adopted a more transparent and accountable approach to its communications with tenants. The new apology retooled to start from the place of understanding the complaint, not with you thinking you’re cool. The new wording states, “Thank you for your complaint dated [XXX] and for taking the time to express your concerns.”
Blakeway stressed that if you need to apologize, be sincere. He noted that “it’s easy to see why such an apology could be perceived to lack genuineness.” His advice focuses on crafting unambiguous amends. They need to take responsibility by clearly communicating their apology without hiding behind passivity or vague words. The ombudsman’s website reinforces this notion, stating that “apologies should include the reason the apology is needed and avoid shifting the blame.”
Camden Council is making these trades on the front lines. It is committed to doing better by residents, and responding to their concerns in a meaningful way. The council understands that there is an immediate need to restore trust with constituents who are renters. They are focused on improving the quality of social housing services.
