STAIRs (Social Tenants Access to Information Requirement Scheme)

What is STAIRs?
STAIRs is the Social Tenants Access to Information Requirement scheme. This is a new standard introduced by the UK Government to enhance transparency for tenants of private sector social housing providers, such as YMCA Lincolnshire.

From 1st October 2026, STAIRs requires that private registered providers, including YMCA Lincolnshire, must publish information publicly about our housing management.

From 1st April 2027 we must also respond to our residents’ information requests within 30 days.

More information about STAIRs can be found here: Social Tenant Access to Information Requirements: policy statement - GOV.UK

Our Housing Services
YMCA Lincolnshire is a Registered Housing Provider, registered with the Regulator of Social Housing. We own and manage over 170 units of accommodation across the city of Lincoln.

Emergency Accommodation:
YMCA Lincolnshire’s direct-access support via the Nomad Centre provides 22 comfortable en-suite bedrooms for people who are homeless or threatened with homelessness. The Nomad Day Centre provides three meals a day and also brings together a range of professionals to provide essential support to people experiencing homelessness, including mental health and physical wellbeing services.

Supported Accommodation:
YMCA Lincolnshire’s supported living scheme has 69 rooms, with on-site support. Here, we help people get back on their feet, providing support in a range of important areas, such as mental wellbeing, preparation for employment, or social development.

Outreach Accommodation:
YMCA Lincolnshire’s outreach accommodation is designed for people who are further along in their support journey and able to live almost completely independently, via houses in the community across the City of Lincoln.

Further information about our services can be found here: Residents Hub - YMCA Lincolnshire


Governance & Decision Making
We are governed by a Board of Trustees, which sets our direction, monitors progress towards our goals and ensures we meet the standards set by the Regulator for Social Housing.

Our Board is supported by a number of key Committees:

  • Finance, Growth and Resilience Committee – this committee has an overview of our annual budget, performance and all financial procedures.
  • Risk and Governance Committee - this committee ensures that our charity is well governed and manages risk effectively.
  • Tackling Homelessness Committee - this committee has an overview of all housing related activities, including compliance, risk, policies and safeguarding.
  • Children, Young People and Communities Committee – this committee has an overview of Early Years, Communities and Youth activities, alongside associated policy and safeguarding.
  • People, Culture and Diversity Committee - this committee ensures that we live and work to our values; support, brave, collaborative, and compassionate.

Further information can be found here: About Us - YMCA Lincolnshire

 

Financial Matters
All financial information is reported through YMCA Lincolnshire's annual accounts and financial statements. These documents are available on the Charity Commission website via the link here: LINCOLNSHIRE Y.M.C.A. LTD - 243017


Housing Stock Management & Performance
YMCA Lincolnshire is committed to providing safe, well-maintained and high-quality accommodation for the people we support. We actively manage and invest in our properties to ensure they remain compliant, fit for purpose and responsive to the needs of residents. Through regular inspections, planned maintenance and responsive repairs, we work to create safe, sustainable living environments.

 Repairs and maintenance are managed by YMCA Lincolnshire’s Maintenance and Facilities Team, and health, safety and risk management is overseen by YMCA Lincolnshire’s Health and Safety Officer.

YMCA Lincolnshire is committed to transparency and makes key information about the quality, safety and performance of our housing services available to residents and stakeholders. This includes relevant inspection and compliance certificates, which are linked below:

  • Annual Reveiw
  • Asbestos Management Survey
  • Gas Safety Certificates
  • Legionella Risk Assessment
  • Electrical Safety Certificates
  • Fire Risk Assessment
  • EPO and Energy Efficiency
  • Insurance

Policies
YMCA Lincolnshire’s policies set out how we manage our services, support residents and maintain high-quality, safe accommodation.

Service specific policies can be found here: Resident Policies - YMCA Lincolnshire


Complaints
On 1 April 2024 the Housing Ombudsman introduced its updated Complaint Handling Code and compliance with this Code became a Statutory requirement on the same date.

A copy of our most recent self-assessment and report can viewed by clicking on the links below.

Residents Complaints and Feedback Policy, August 2026

Housing Complaints and Feedback Procedure, May 2026

Information for Residents about the Housing Ombudsman

How to Contact the Housing Ombudsman

YMCA Lincolnshire Housing Complaints Self-Assessment

Information paper - Complaints Handling, August 2026

Statement from The Tackling Homelessness Committee on behalf of YMCA Lincolnshire Board of Trustees:

"The Board recognises the vital importance of listening to residents and responding effectively to their feedback and concerns. We are committed to ensuring that all feedback is treated seriously, fairly and as an opportunity to learn and improve the services we provide.

Over the past year, we have strengthened our focus on understanding residents' experiences and embedding their feedback into service improvement. Complaints provide valuable insight into where we are performing well and where changes are needed to deliver better outcomes for residents.

To support this commitment, our Service Improvement Group continue to regularly review complaint trends, lessons learned and resident feedback. This enables us to identify opportunities for improvement, monitor progress and drive positive change across our services.

We have also undertaken a comprehensive self-assessment against the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code. The findings have informed a targeted improvement plan designed to strengthen our processes, enhance service delivery and ensure residents receive a fair, timely and an effective response when things go wrong.

The Board remains committed to maintaining a positive complaint-handling culture, learning from and using residents' feedback to shape our services. We will continue to monitor performance, scrutinise progress and support improvements that help us meet the needs and expectations of the communities we serve."

Information on how to make a complaint can be found here.

 

Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs)
Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs) are performance measures that all housing associations, including small social housing providers with less than 1,000 units of accommodation like YMCA Lincolnshire. The TSM’s help us to ensure that the standards of service you receive from us is high, and they give you a better understanding of how we are performing.

TSM’s are collected by all landlords in accordance with the requirements set out by the Regulator for Social Housing (RSH). The TSM’s are considered within the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard.

The TSM’s cover things like overall satisfaction, keeping properties in good order, maintaining building safety, safety checks, respectful and helpful engagement, effective handling of complaints, and responsible neighbourhood management.

TSMs are a tool to allow residents to:

  • Scrutinise our performance
  • Give insights to us on where we might look to improve our services
  • Provide the RSH with a source of intelligence on how we are meeting the outcomes of the new consumer standards.

How do we collate information for the TSM’s?
Our first TSM survey was carried out in August 2023 and in accordance with the guidance issued by the RSH we will carry out surveys every 2 years. The surveys help us to understand what matters most to you our residents. It also influences where we focus any improvements to our services or buildings when looking to make improvements.

Who do we ask?
Anyone staying with us at the time of us carrying out the survey will be asked to take part.

How do we survey?
We will offer a variety of ways for residents to take part in the TSM surveys making it as accessible as we can.  This will include:

  • An online option via Survey Monkey
  • The completion of a hard copy of the survey
  • Completing the survey with the support and assistance of your YMCA Resident Advisor or Case Worker.

If you can think of any way that we can help you to take part in the TSM survey please do let us know.

All surveys are anonymous, we do not ask you to share any personal data.

What do we ask?
We ask a set of questions specified by the RSH. These have to be asked in a specific order and use specific wording to enable comparison to other landlords. The regulator’s guidance is here.

What happens next?
Once completed the results of the survey will be submitted to the RSH and they are also available on our website.

To view our 2025/26 TSM’s please click here.


Communications
You will find our latest news and events here: News - YMCA Lincolnshire

 

Other Information, Resident Welfare and Support
YMCA Lincolnshire provides more than just accommodation. Our residents have access to support that is tailored to their individual needs, including practical and emotional support around health and wellbeing, life skills, access to services, and developing the confidence and resilience needed to sustain independent living.  This includes:

  • Partnership with the NHS through the Holistic Health for the Homeless team, which ensures residents have appropriate and timely medical interventions for their physical and mental health needs.
  • An in-house psychotherapy support service through talking therapies with emphasis on bereavement and support for suicide ideation.
  • Partnerships with local agencies and organisations which provide drug and alcohol support, sexual health support, sight and hearing checks.

Resident Volunteering:
YMCA Lincolnshire operates a structured, inclusive, safe and sustainable volunteering framework that empowers YMCA Lincolnshire residents to contribute meaningfully to their community, build skills, and improve their wellbeing.

YMCA Lincolnshire’s Resident Volunteering Scheme aims to:

  • Increase the future prospects of our residents
  • Develop resident skills, confidence, and employability
  • Create clear progression routes from volunteering into training and employment

Resident Activities:
YMCA Lincolnshire offers a range of activities designed to help residents use their time meaningfully, build confidence, develop new skills, and form positive relationships.

Information about the range of activities on offer can be found in the posters and timetables below:

Resident Engagement:
YMCA Lincolnshire is committed to listening to residents and involving them in shaping the services we provide. Residents are encouraged to share their views through surveys, feedback opportunities, consultations, complaints and day-to-day engagement with our teams. Feedback is used to review services, identify improvements and ensure residents' voices help influence decision-making.

YMCA Lincolnshire also operates a Resident’s Council, where Resident Representatives are encouraged to share feedback and help to shape the services we provide.

If you have any questions about the information on this page or would like to know more, please email housing@lincsymca.co.uk.