How social housing can build trust through every customer interaction.

Most people think of "comms" as the thing a marketing team produces, a newsletter, a LinkedIn post, a press release.

Kyle doesn't see it that way. Because it isn't.

As newly appointed Director of Partnerships and Communications at CHIC (the Communities and Housing Investment Consortium), Kyle joined the People in Housing Podcast just seven weeks into a role that, for the first time in the organisation's 15-year history, brings communications, partnerships and social value together under one person.

His argument, drawn from experience spanning tenant-facing housing communications, research communications and large-scale placemaking, is that trust in a housing brand comes down to two things: the everyday interactions residents actually have with an organisation, and whether that organisation is honest with people about how it uses their information.

Kyle's career has moved between very different kinds of communication, from direct tenant communication at Trent & Dove to business-to-business relationship management at CHIC, a procurement consortium connecting around 300 housing association and local authority members with 1,500 supply chain partners.

He's candid about where the sector still falls short, particularly around explaining to residents what data is being collected about them and why, and about how much work is still needed to shift public understanding of what social housing actually is.

What does an organisation like CHIC actually do?

CHIC is a not-for-profit, member-owned procurement consortium that connects housing associations and local authorities with vetted supply chain partners delivering asset management work, everything from kitchens and bathrooms to consultancy, technology and home condition surveys. Because the money involved is public money, having a compliant, transparent route to market matters. CHIC's role is effectively a matchmaking service, helping members access suppliers at the right scale and locality, while helping smaller and larger contractors alike access opportunities they might not reach alone.

Social value is a legally required part of that process. Under the Procurement Act, contracts must direct a minimum share of value, CHIC works to at least 1%, into community benefit, which might mean local employment support, training, volunteering or direct funding through CHIC's associated charity, CHIP (Community Housing Investment in People). Kyle described the organisation's role here as similar to its procurement function: connecting the right support to the right need, rather than leaving individual contractors to work out social value obligations alone.

Kyle's own role change reflects a broader shift in how the sector is starting to think about these functions. Comms, partnership management and social value have historically sat in separate teams, but at CHIC they've now been deliberately brought together, on the logic that the conversations CHIC has with its members feed directly into how it manages supply chain relationships, and vice versa.

Why brand and trust are built in every interaction, not just marketing content.

Perhaps the clearest theme running through the conversation was that a housing association's brand isn't primarily shaped by what it publishes. It's shaped by what happens when a resident calls customer services, raises a repair, or goes through a complaint that hasn't gone well. Communications and marketing can set intention and tone, but the lived experience of a service interaction is what actually builds, or erodes, a resident's sense of connection to their landlord.

That matters more, not less, as the sector continues consolidating through mergers. Kyle's view is that maintaining a sense of belonging through organisational change depends on consistency across every touchpoint, not just how well a merger is communicated at launch. A well-designed campaign can't compensate for a housing officer, a repairs contractor and a complaints handler all delivering a different experience.

How can housing associations tackle negative headlines and stigma?

Kyle was direct that social housing still carries significant public misunderstanding, and often outright stigma, much of it stemming from limited awareness of what social housing actually is or who lives in it. His view is that storytelling, real, varied stories about the people social housing supports, is one of the sector's most under-used tools for shifting that perception.

He also pointed to a more active responsibility for comms teams: directly and visibly responding to hostility or misinformation on social media, rather than letting it stand unchallenged, backed by clear, data-informed responses. That combination, better storytelling paired with active moderation, is how he believes the sector starts to close the gap between the reality of social housing and the public's understanding of it.

Where is the sector getting communication right, and where does it need to improve?

Kyle was clear that intent across the sector is generally right, and there are strong pockets of practice around resident consultation and genuine tenant voice. Where he sees room for improvement is data. As consumer standards push landlords to better understand who lives in their homes in order to deliver more tailored support, there's a growing risk of residents feeling labelled, flagged or reduced to a data category, particularly around sensitive information like vulnerability, without clear consent or explanation of why that data is being collected.

His view is that the sector has the intelligence it needs. What's inconsistent is the emotional intelligence behind how that data use is communicated back to the people it's about. Collecting better data to improve services is the right instinct. Doing it without residents understanding why, or feeling like a statistic rather than a person, undermines the same trust the sector is trying to build.

The challenge nobody's quite solved yet.

Asked directly what the biggest communications challenge in housing is today, Kyle didn't point to any single campaign or channel. He pointed to volume and clarity: the sheer amount of regulatory change residents now need to understand, from consumer standards to the second phase of Awaab's Law arriving later this year, delivered in a way that actually empowers people to understand their rights, rather than leaving them as an afterthought to an organisation focused on hitting compliance metrics.

For Kyle, getting that right isn't a nice-to-have. It's the difference between a sector that communicates at residents, and one that communicates with them.

FAQs

How can housing associations build trust with residents?

Trust is shaped less by marketing content and more by the cumulative experience of everyday interactions, such as calling customer services, raising a repair or going through a complaint. Housing associations that communicate consistently and transparently across all of these touchpoints, rather than only through campaigns, tend to build stronger resident trust over time.

What is social value in housing sector procurement?

Social value refers to the wider community benefit generated by a contract, beyond the core service delivered, and is a legal requirement under the Procurement Act. In housing, this typically means a minimum percentage of contract value being directed toward local employment support, training, volunteering or community funding, often coordinated through a consortium or associated charity.

How can housing associations tackle stigma around social housing?

Storytelling that reflects the real, varied experiences of residents is one of the most effective tools for shifting public perception, alongside actively challenging misinformation or hostility where it appears on social media, backed by clear, factual responses rather than letting it go unaddressed.

How should housing providers communicate about resident data collection?

Landlords increasingly need to understand residents' circumstances to deliver tailored support, but this needs to be paired with clear, honest communication about what data is being collected and why. Without that, residents can feel labelled or reduced to a category rather than treated as individuals, which undermines the trust the data collection is meant to support.

How does a merger affect a housing association's relationship with residents?

Residents' sense of belonging to an organisation is shaped less by how a merger is announced and more by whether service quality and consistency are maintained across everyday interactions afterwards, including repairs, complaints and customer service, throughout the transition.

If you'd like to hear the full conversation with Kyle Smith, you can find the People in Housing Podcast on Spotify and YouTube. To find out more about CHIC, visit chicltd.co.uk.

Useful links:

• Listen to the People in Housing Podcast on Spotify
• Watch the People in Housing Podcast on YouTube
• Learn more about CHIC