At Colchester Borough Homes, we believe everyone deserves to be treated with respect and fairness, whatever type of home they live in. We are committed to tackling social housing stigma and making sure our services, language and everyday actions reflect these values.

This page sets out what social housing stigma means, why it matters, and the steps we have taken – and continue to take – to address it.

What do we mean by social housing stigma?

Social housing stigma is when people make assumptions about someone because they live in social housing.

This can show up in things like:

• how people are spoken to
• how concerns are taken seriously
• the language used about tenants or estates

Stigma can affect confidence, wellbeing and trust. Tackling it starts with listening, understanding lived experience and treating people fairly and consistently.

Why tackling stigma matters to CBH

In 2023, we worked with residents to review our Resident Engagement Strategy. During this work, residents told us clearly that social housing stigma was still an issue and that it needed to be addressed directly.

As a result, tackling stigma was built into our Customer Commitments 2023–2026, marking the start of a long‑term, organisation‑wide approach. One of our commitments is to listen and address issues relating to stigma and challenge culture where necessary. This forms the foundation for our ongoing work.

Working with Stop Social Housing Stigma

CBH became one of the early housing organisations to engage with the national Stop Social Housing Stigma campaign and to take part as a Pioneer Traveller.

As a first step, we hosted a multi‑agency stigma workshop bringing together tenants, contractors and CBH staff. The session was led by the Stop Social Housing Stigma campaign and focused on sharing honest experiences, understanding the impact of stigma and identifying practical actions for change.

As one tenant, Cathryn, explained: “It was good to have everyone in the room – tenants, staff and contractors – all working together”

These workshops directly informed our next steps.

Turning ideas into action

Following the workshop, we developed a Stigma Action Plan. This sets out how we are embedding culture change across the organisation rather than treating stigma as a one‑off issue.

Key strands of this work include education and training, tenant engagement, communications, contractor working arrangements, governance and scrutiny. The focus is on making change visible in everyday behaviour and service delivery.

National learning and sector engagement

In May 2025, CBH attended the parliamentary launch of the Stop Social Housing Stigma Journey Planner, alongside an involved customer and Tenant Inspector. This tool helps organisations assess culture, policies and behaviours and plan meaningful action to tackle stigma.

We have also been invited to share its approach and learning with sector partners, reflecting the organisation’s commitment to contributing to wider culture change across social housing.

Education, awareness and language

We are taking a whole‑organisation approach to raising awareness and supporting culture change. This includes the development of an e‑learning module for staff, Board members and contractors, using lived experience and practical scenarios to encourage reflection on language, behaviour and everyday decision‑making.

Alongside training, we have developed a communications plan to publicise and support our work to tackle social housing stigma. This plan helps ensure that key messages about respect, fairness and tenant voice are shared consistently across internal and external channels, including tenant communications, staff updates, contractor engagement and online content. The aim is to reinforce expectations, raise awareness and make sure our commitment to tackling stigma is visible in how we communicate as well as how we deliver services.

Working with contractors

Resident feedback, complaints and satisfaction data highlighted that contractor interactions are a key area where stigma can be felt.

We now work more closely with contractors to set clear expectations around behaviour, communication, complaints handling and professionalism. This has included contractor engagement sessions and the development of a contractor information leaflet setting out who CBH tenants are, what matters to them, and the standards expected when working in social housing homes.

Building on this work, CBH has planned a dedicated contractor event in July 2026, focused specifically on tackling social housing stigma.

View our Information for Contractors leaflet here Contractor-customer-information-leaflet.pdf

Scrutiny, leadership and accountability

We have strengthened our approach to scrutiny, governance and accountability to ensure that tackling social housing stigma is embedded across how services are delivered and overseen.

Tenant Inspectors are playing an important role in this work. They are joining the Stop Social Housing Stigma and TPAS scrutiny project, using national frameworks to examine how stigma can appear within housing services and how it can be challenged in practice. This includes reviewing services, behaviours and processes through a stigma‑aware lens and considering where improvements are needed.

Alongside this, we are reviewing our resident engagement opportunities to make sure they are effective, inclusive and genuinely influence decision‑making. This helps ensure that tenant voice continues to shape services and that concerns about stigma are identified and addressed consistently, rather than informally.

Recognising positive behaviour and good practice

We recognise the importance of celebrating positive contributions and behaviours that help create respectful neighbourhoods and relationships. This includes tenant awards such as the Good Neighbour Award and recognition through TPAS Engagement Heroes, which highlight the role tenants play in supporting their communities and influencing services.

Celebrating positive practice helps challenge negative stereotypes and reinforces the value of social housing communities.

Senior leadership visibility and oversight

Senior management visibility is a key part of our approach to culture change. Tenant‑led inspectors now join staff updates with the Chief Executive and Directors at live events, helping ensure tenant experience informs leadership conversations directly.

A senior management representative also attends Resident Voice Panel meetings when requested, providing a clear route for tenant concerns to be heard at a senior level. Directors and Board members are involved in awareness‑raising sessions, and tenants are supported to ask open questions through initiatives such as Voice Your View, strengthening transparency and trust.

Board‑led, strategic approach

Tackling social housing stigma is being overseen at a strategic level. A specific stigma section has been included within Resident Engagement Board reports, ensuring regular visibility and accountability.

The CBH Board has agreed a Board champion role for stigma, with regular meetings scheduled, including Board councillors. This helps embed a top‑down commitment and ensures that lived experience, culture and behaviour are considered alongside performance and service delivery.

One‑team approach across tenants, staff and contractors

We take a “one‑team” approach, recognising that tenant experience is shaped by everyone involved in service delivery. Events such as winter engagement activities bring tenants, staff and contractors together, helping to build shared understanding and strengthen relationships.

Volunteer Quality Assurance Advisors also support this work by monitoring areas such as grounds maintenance and cleaning contracts, providing additional oversight and feedback on how services are delivered on the ground.

Supporting tenant opportunity and influence

CBH is committed to enabling tenants to influence services and access opportunities. This includes supporting tenants to apply for CBH job roles, working with partner agencies to provide employment support, and offering opportunities to develop skills through TPAS learning and attendance at national housing and scrutiny events.

Tenants influence decisions through a range of routes, including the Complaints Focus Panel, Resident Voice, Reading Panels, Repairs and Asset Panels, Tenant Inspector roles and consultations. This ensures that tenant insight continues to shape services and organisational priorities.

Understanding tenants and supporting individual needs

Our “Getting To Know You” project uses data and insight to better understand who tenants are, what matters to them and what support they may need. This work links closely to our Vulnerability and Reasonable Adjustments policies and processes, helping ensure that services are inclusive and responsive to individual circumstances.

Understanding tenants better supports fairer decision‑making and helps reduce the risk of stigma in service delivery.

National recognition and sector learning

CBH has been invited to share its work on tackling social housing stigma with sector partners. This includes presenting at the Northern Housing Consortium Tenant Voice Conference 2025 and being invited by Stop Social Housing Stigma to present CBH’s journey at the SSHA Officer Forum.

These opportunities allow CBH to contribute learning to the wider housing sector and to continue learning from others, helping to strengthen our own approach.

Looking ahead

Tackling social housing stigma is ongoing work. CBH has a clear programme of activity planned to continue embedding this approach across the organisation.

This includes staff Lunch and Learn sessions, the development of staff ambassadors, continued terminology and language review, and reviews of service standards, strategies and policies. CBH will continue working with contractors, embedding stigma awareness within organisational behaviours, and using national tools from Stop Social Housing Stigma to monitor progress and learning over time.

We also plan to build wider awareness through community engagement, schools and leaseholder engagement, alongside sharing learning through videos, blogs and case studies that reflect lived experience.

Further information and links

Stop Social Housing Stigma
Regulator of Social Housing Consumer Standards