Customer surveys
Your feedback helps us understand what we’re doing well and where we need to improve, and the Customer Survey is one of the key ways we listen and respond to your experiences.
How we hear from residents
The Customer Survey is a simple but important way for us to hear directly from residents about what’s working well and where we can improve. We ask about key areas such as repairs, cleanliness in communal spaces, handling of complaints, and overall satisfaction with our services.
Your feedback helps us understand where we’re meeting expectations and where we need to make changes. It’s one of the main ways we stay connected with residents and ensure we provide a service you can rely on.
How the customer survey works
We survey approximately 25% of residents each quarter, gathering feedback from a broad and diverse group across all our properties. The survey covers key areas such as repairs, complaints, cleanliness, and overall satisfaction. Each year, our team reviews and updates the questions to make sure they remain relevant. All residents will be given the opportunity to fill in the survey annually.
Net Promoter Score (NPS)
Most survey questions measure satisfaction as a percentage, and we also use the Net Promoter Score (NPS) to understand how likely residents are to recommend our services:
NPS questions:
- How likely are you to recommend Touchstone to a friend or colleague?
- How likely are you to recommend Dolphin Living to a friend or colleague?
Residents respond on a scale from 0 to 10:
• Promoters (9–10): Loyal and enthusiastic residents
• Passives (7–8): Satisfied but unenthusiastic
• Detractors (0–6): Residents who may be unhappy and discourage others
2024/25 NPS results:
- Dolphin Living: 40 (up 9 points – strong score)
- Touchstone: 27 (up from 14 – showing big improvement)
Full Customer Survey 2024/25 results:
80%
77%
81%
78%
82%
82%
87%
44%
76%
80%
75%
You said, we did
At Dolphin, we value feedback from our residents and take your concerns seriously. Over the past year, we’ve listened to what you’ve told us and taken steps to address the issues that matter most. Below are some examples of the feedback you shared and the actions we’ve taken in response.
“There has been a change in my circumstances, and I am now struggling with rent.”
We understand that financial situations can change unexpectedly, and it’s important to us that you feel supported during those times. We continue to offer affordability assessments, and personalised arrears management plans as well as help accessing support from local authorities. We also launched our Temporary Personalised Rent policy this year to help residents who have a change in their financial circumstances. See rent and tenancy page for more information on affordability.
“Relatively high staff turnover at Touchstone. Can't keep up with who to contact.”
We understand frequent staff changes can be frustrating. We’ve been working closely with Touchstone to address the root causes and ensure greater consistency across our team. Our aim is to maintain dedicated staff on our portfolio wherever possible, so residents can build strong relationships with property managers who truly understand their needs. If you are unsure who to contact, see contact information for up-to-date contact details for each property.
“Parcels keep disappearing from the mailbox room.”
Although parcel theft has decreased across our portfolio, unfortunately we do still experience thefts. We understand how frustrating and upsetting this can be for residents. We will continue to review security measures and make enhancements where possible. This includes works to strengthen our entrance and internal doors against forced entry. As advised by the MET Police, we strongly recommend residents to have their parcels delivered to safe collections points if they cannot be at home to receive them. Most of our properties have several collection points located nearby.
“There are too many contractors coming in and out.”
We understand how multiple contractor visits can be disruptive and inconvenient. That’s why we’re working closely with Touchstone to better coordinate appointments around our resident's availability and reduce the number of contractor visits needed. We’ve increased Touchstone’s mandate to deal with more minor issues discovered during a visit. This will help limit how often we need to send a contractor to your house. Touchstone is now able to approve additional small repairs identified during a contractor visit.
Tenant Perception Measures (TPMs)
All social housing landlords are responsible for running Tenant Perception Surveys to collect data for the Tenant satisfaction measures TP01—TP12. Smaller landlords, with fewer than 1000 homes, like Dolphin Housing Limited are required to produce this every two years.
The results are published online, giving residents transparency about our performance.
Gov.uk extract: “The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard requires all registered providers of social housing to collect and report annually on their performance using a core set of defined measures. We call these measures the Tenant Satisfaction Measures. The TSMs provide tenants with greater transparency about their landlord’s performance.”
The TPMs focus on five key themes:
- Keeping properties in good repair.
- Maintaining building safety.
- Respectful and helpful engagement.
- Effective handling of complaints
- Responsible neighbourhood management
Please note: these residents have Dolphin Housing Limited stated as their landlord on their tenancy agreement.
Difference between TPMs and the Customer Survey
We want to hear from as many residents as possible, which is why we send quarterly Customer Surveys that include several TPM questions. This feedback is for our internal use only and is not shared with the Regulator of Social Housing. To avoid survey fatigue, DHL residents do not receive the Customer Survey during the six months leading up to the Tenant Perception Survey, ensuring response rates aren’t affected.
What we do well and how we can improve:
We are very pleased to see a strong set of TSM results, and in particular high Tenant Perception results with an average score of 73% overall. It is particularly pleasing that our residents feel we treat them fairly and with respect, and that we are providing a high level of service. Residents are at the heart of everything we do at Dolphin Housing Limited and we pride ourselves on building honest and transparent relationships. It is also good to see relatively high levels of satisfaction with repairs; reflecting our ongoing work in this area which included a full end to end process review earlier in the year.
One of the lower scores is around our contribution to the neighbourhood. Given our size it can be hard to show tangible contributions in this area but we work closely with local councils and providers where possible. Complaint handling is also one of our lower scores but we are confident that the improvements we are making in this area, in addition to hiring a new Resident Liaison and Regulation Manager, will increase our levels of satisfaction going forward. Our lowest score is our approach to handling anti-social behaviour (ASB). This is largely driven by a high number of ‘neither satisfied or dissatisfied’ responses. At properties where we do not manage the whole building, or residents have not been affected by ASB in any form, we feel this is a likely response. However we continue to review all ASB cases to drive resolutions and take appropriate action with all parties involved.
We have reviewed the results of our TSM’s with our Group Board and will be implementing changes and driving improvements based on the results during the coming year.
Contact
If you have any questions about the Customer Survey or TSMs, or want to provide feedback directly, please contact the Customer Service Team at info@dolphinliving.com.
Other ways we can help
Policies and guides
Our Policies and Guides page provides residents with easy access to important policies, and helpful resources. Explore the information here to stay informed.
Health and safety
We are committed to maintaining safe, secure homes through regular inspections, compliance checks, and fire and gas safety measures.
Complaints process
Learn how to make a complaint and how we respond promptly to ensure issues are addressed fairly and effectively.
Tenancy and rent
Find essential information about your tenancy, rent payments, and the support available if you fall behind
Sustainability
Learn practical tips and guidance to help make your home more energy-efficient, eco-friendly, and sustainable.
We're Here for You
If you have any questions or need assistance, don't hesitate to reach out. Your comfort and satisfaction are our top priorities.
