Customer Engagement Round-up: April 2026
Every month, we pull together a round-up of customer engagement information, including:
- Opportunities to get involved
- Latest updates, news, and information
- Training, employment, and support
- Coming soon
If there’s anything you’d like to see, or you have any questions, please email customer.engagement@stonewater.org
Entries now open for our Gardening Competition
Entering is easy, and there are prizes to be won.
- Choose a category (four to choose from)
- Submit up to three photos
- Tell us a little bit about your garden
Hear from last year's winners, Daf, who turned her waterlogged plot into a competition winning garden.
The Big Lunch and The Big Help Out
The Big Lunch and The Big Help Out are teaming up on 5-8 June 2026 for a weekend of friendship, food, fun and action to improve local communities – and everyone’s invited!
Check out the Eden Project Communites website to see how to create your own event or to see what’s going on near you. You can also join our Customer hubb to see what’s going on in Bridgwater in Somerset.
It’s Volunteers’ Week (1-7 June)
This is a great opportunity to say a big thank you to our involved customers for the time, dedication and feedback they generously give. It all makes a huge difference in helping us improve our services and build better connected communities. We also know that many of you volunteer for other charities and community organisations, and that deserves a big shout out too. You’re all doing amazing things!
Head over to our Facebook page to meet some of our volunteers and hear more about what they get up to. If you’ve been inspired to make a difference, then explore ways you can get involved.
We’ve launched our new customer strategy
We’re grateful that so many of you have been honest with us about what it’s like to use our services. You’ve told us what’s working well, and where things could be better. That feedback has helped shape our new customer strategy.
One of the clearest messages you shared was that you want to see more of us in your community. So, over the coming months, you’ll start to see more colleagues out and about as we begin working in localities, with dedicated housing officers in each area helping to build better-connected communities.
What’s a hedgehog highway?
We’re proud to be supporting the Manor Road Community Garden, a partnership project with Swindon Parish Council and Wiltshire Wildlife Trust. We’re helping to enhance the area with a new fence, hedgehog highways, and a volunteer shelter (currently under construction). The garden is used by a range of voluntary groups, with opportunities for corporate volunteering. Plans are also underway to work with a local theatre group to design a creative wildlife-themed mural.
Want to find out more about how you can help hedgehogs? Visit Hedgehog Street.
Making our mutual exchange communications clearer
Based on customer feedback and the questions our colleagues were receiving, we reviewed the email sent to customers enquiring about a mutual exchange.
Working alongside our engaged customers, we've updated the email to make it clearer, more personal, and easier to understand. We’ve improved how we explain the mutual exchange process, made the timescales clearer, and highlighted the actions customers need to take. A great result all round!
It’s now easier to see how you can volunteer
If you’ve been thinking about volunteering, now is the perfect time!
We’ve refreshed our Get Involved pages, thanks to a review by the Scrutiny Panel, so it’s now even easier to explore the opportunities available and see what each role involves. There’s something for everyone, so take a look, apply, and join us.
Mystery shopping. EICRs under the spotlight
Working with our Mechanical and Electrical team, our Mystery Shoppers reviewed how we handle enquiries about Electrical Installation Condition Reports. Results showed a positive, professional and friendly greeting, but some shoppers said they didn’t get enough info about what an EICR is and why it’s required. We’re now working to improve this to make sure customers are well informed after contacting us.
Clearer text messages to customers
Our Neighbourhoods and Communications teams worked together with customers to create new text message templates. We sent an email to engaged customers to get feedback on the messages. This helped us make sure they’re clear, friendly, and more helpful to customers.
Improving Westcroft Park with two happy to chat benches
We’ve funded two happy to chat benches in Westcroft Park, Hungerdown Lane. Local residents requested the benches and are they’re really happy with them saying:
‘They give people a chance to stop for a breather, have a chat with a friend, or just sit and watch the world go by’
What to do if you’re stuck in a lift
Customers let us know it’d be helpful to have clearer instructions on what to do if a lift breaks down while you’re inside. So, working together with our Building Safety Group, we’ve created a clear, easy-to-follow poster that’ll be put up in all lifts very soon.
Housing Ombudsman publishes their 2026-27 business plan
Earlier in the year we shared an opportunity for you to have your say on the new Housing Ombudsman Business Plan. They’ve now published their 2026-27 plan using feedback from landlords, residents, and stakeholders. It sets out how they’re going to respond to rising demand and deliver faster, fairer outcomes for residents.
Jobs at Stonewater
Check out our latest vacancies including some flexible, part-time, and home-based roles.
Coming soon
A sneak preview of what we’re working on and things to look out for:
- Making the most of retirement living. Scrutiny Panel have finished their review on scheme based engaged in retirement living schemes. Their report and recommendations are being approved, and we’ll share a summary with you soon.