Helping customers be heard: meet Lisa, chair of the Designated Complaints Panel

Lisa has been part of the Aster community for 26 years. A leaseholder living at Devizes in Wiltshire, she has spent much of that time actively involved in customer groups and helping improve services for customers. 

Today, she plays an important role as Chair of our Designated Complaints Panel (DCP) – a panel that reviews complaints and finds ways services can continue to improve for customers. 

Lisa has been an involved Aster customer for over two decades. After some of the committees she had been part were reshaped, she was encouraged to join the Designated Complaints Panel. 

“I’d been an involved customer for many years and the DCP was suggested to me,” Lisa explains. 

Before becoming Chair, Lisa had already spent several years on the panel and was nominated for the role by the outgoing Chair. 

“I had been on the panel for a number of years by then, so I wanted to help make sure its relevance was maintained,” she says. 

The panel reviews a wide range of issues raised by customers. Complaints can cover everything from repairs and damp and mould to gardening concerns or neighbour disputes. 

“Complaints are very varied,” Lisa says. “Each one is an opportunity to understand what happened and whether anything could have been done differently.” 

As part of their work, the panel sometimes speaks directly to customers after their complaint has been resolved to better understand their experience. 

“We try to identify whether an alternative approach could have improved the process,” Lisa explains. “It’s about learning from each situation and helping things work better in the future.” 

For Lisa, one of the most important aspects of the panel is that its members are customers themselves. 

“We’re tenants or leaseholders too, so we understand the same kinds of problems customers face,” she says. “I hope the panel helps people feel that Aster really cares about them.” 

And for customers considering getting involved, Lisa has simple advice: 

“If you have the time and are interested in people and process, it can be very satisfying.”  

To learn more about our Designated Complaints Panel and get involved yourself, please visit our website. 

Visit our complaints page, which inlcudes all the information about what to do if ou're unahppy with one of our services here.