BASILDON residents are being encouraged by the Housing Ombudsman to volunteer to be part of a virtual resident panel.

Basildon Council is supporting the call encouraging council tenants and residents to get involved in the virtual panel meetings.

Chairman of Basildon Council's Housing and Communities Committee Cllr Kerry Smith said: "This is a good opportunity for residents to have a say on housing matters.

"It is an independent panel facilitated by the Housing Ombudsman and not Basildon Council so anyone interested will need to apply online.

"Residents do not have to be a current tenant representative with any landlord and are not obligated to apply."

The call for volunteer representatives is in response to the new Social Housing White Paper released in November 2020.

One element of this was awarding more powers to the Housing Ombudsman, to address under performance by landlords in relation to complaints handling and how the council consults with its tenants.

The Housing Ombudsman published its new Complaints Handling Code in November 2020 and a copy can be found on its website.

The deadline to sign up is Thursday, 25 February. To find out more click here.