Three cheers for three stars!

Sue Robin announce the news Stars in their eyes: Northwards chief executive, Robin Lawler (left), and chair of our board, Sue Ratchford, celebrate the result.

Three Stars company
A three star company

It’s official - Northwards gets top marks from inspectors

It’s full steam ahead to finish all home improvements after the government watchdog, the Audit Commission, awarded us a maximum three-star rating.

The Commission put us through a rigorous two-week inspection in November 2008. They looked at how well we do things like repairs, customer care, tenant involvement, access to services, caring for the local environment, and providing services to diverse communities.

Top result

The Commission awards housing organisations no stars, one star, two stars or three stars - depending on how well they perform.

Our three-star rating with ‘excellent prospects for improvement’ – announced on 12 February 2009 - is recognition of how we’ve improved since taking over from the council in December 2005. We’re the first housing organisation in Manchester to reach the top mark.

The inspectors said we delivered value for money, and were particularly impressed by our accessible services, the website, the appearance of Northwards estates, and customer satisfaction. And they loved the regular tenants’ newsletter, Northwards Natter.

More good news

The result gives us the green light to get the funding we need to finish our five-year drive to make big improvements to every Northwards home. It’s real proof that local people made a good decision when they voted to launch Northwards a few years ago.

Don’t worry that we think we’ve done it all now. We know we’re not perfect, and won’t rest on our three-star laurels. The inspectors said we need to fill empty homes more quickly, improve our rent collection, and have better communication with leaseholders (people who have bought their flat but still get services from us).

So we’re cracking on with getting even better!

See the report

See the full Northwards inspection report (Audit Commission website).

Find out more about the Audit Commission and inspections.

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