Orbit’s Better Days programme has scooped the award for ‘Most Innovative Approach to Resident Welfare’ at Housing Digital’s Housing Innovation Awards 2025.
The Better Days programme helps thousands of people every year by offering free services to all customers that support them to maintain their tenancies and fulfil their potential by removing barriers that might be created by unemployment, debt, poor mental health, or other social and economic issues.
Orbit has invested in a multi-channel approach and actively sought innovative ways to ensure that this support is accessible to as many people as possible, including creating a new single source portal with Family Fund Business Services (FFBS) to manage customer grants. The data collected through the portal allows Orbit to track and forecast customer requests, meaning that customers receive a more responsive service.
Other innovations have included:
- Piloting a mobile customer hub to reach customers in more rural areas.
- Investing in a team of Community Connectors and Place Area Leads to engage customers face to face within communities
- Developing underutilised community buildings, to create a network of Community Hubs for customers, removing barriers to services and leveraging social value through partnerships with local authorities and voluntary organisations.
Helen Gleadell, Better Days Manager for Orbit commented: “We’re delighted to receive this award which is a reflection of our commitment to placing our customers at the heart of all we do and our drive to constantly improve and innovate our services to best meet their needs and to make lasting positive differences to their lives and the wider communities that we work in.”
Orbit’s investment in the Better Days programme supports its recently launched Everyday Excellence plan designed to enhance Orbit’s customer experience and help realise its 2030 ambition to deliver amongst the best customer service of any housing association in the country.