New pledge supports LGBT+ residents

Irwell Valley Homes has signed up to a new HouseProud Pledge scheme designed to ensure Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer residents are able to enjoy their homes without fear of discrimination.

HouseProud is the professional network for LGBTQ+ people working in the housing sector. In 2017, HouseProud commissioned the University of Surrey to research LGBTQ+ experiences of social housing.  The study No Place Like Home found that despite more than 10 years of equality in legislation, LGBTQ+ residents continue to experience discrimination in their everyday lives, including in relation to housing in some cases.

The home is of central importance to LGBTQ+ residents, because it should be a place where people can freely express their sexual orientation and/ or gender identity without fear or prejudice.  So in response to the Survey , the HouseProud Pledge scheme was been developed in association with residents, staff members and sector leaders from across the country to empower social housing providers to improve services for LGBTQ+ residents and ensure consistent promotion of inclusivity.

The HouseProud Pledge provides a framework for landlords to work collaboratively with involved residents to take action and demonstrate their commitment to LGBTQ+ equality and support.  In the latest Social Housing Green Paper, the Government called on the sector to empower residents and strengthen accountability. The HouseProud Pledge has been designed to do just that, by helping housing providers to work with involved LGBTQ+ residents and foster positive relationships.

All social housing providers can join. Those who sign up are actively committing to improve their housing services for LGBTQ+ residents and are expected to deliver on three core commitments within their first year:

• Ensure that LGBTQ+ residents can have an input at an executive/strategic level
• Increase LGBTQ+ visibility through the use of the Pledge symbol
• Initiate a programme of staff training to improve understanding of LGBTQ+ lives

You can find out more about the pledge here. If you are a customers and you're interested in helping us on our journey, we'd love to welcome you onto our E&D customer group.