Shaping services together: a resident perspective
Iain has been a resident at West Kent for the last ten years and has recently joined as a resident ambassador. Find out more about why he wanted to get involved.
Change doesn't always begin with a campaign or a big announcement. Sometimes it starts when someone notices something that could be better and chooses to speak up.
I've lived in my West Kent home for a decade. Like many residents, I care about how things work and how they could work better. When I saw an opportunity to get more involved, I took it, becoming one of West Kent's first Resident Ambassadors. But, making a difference doesn't require a title; real change often begins with a foundation of everyday conversations, small ideas, and lived experience.
Resident involvement at West Kent has grown significantly in recent years. What started as basic feedback is now evolving into genuine collaboration, with residents no longer simply being asked for our views after decisions are made. Instead, we are becoming active partners in shaping the services that support our homes and communities, with opportunities to contribute at the earliest stages of planning, design, and decision-making. I've seen a powerful shift from feedback to influence, where we are helping to shape policies, improve communications, and guide new initiatives in a way that reflects real life.
This includes helping to close the feedback loop. We've moved beyond a simple ‘you said, we did’ approach to one where we now see, ‘we asked, you said, we did’. That kind of transparency builds trust and shows the real value of resident insight. For those working alongside us, I hope this offers a clear picture of what resident-led collaboration looks like. These aren't one-off consultations; this is long-term work built on trust, action, and shared purpose.
Residents are not only being heard, but we are also being included. This inclusion is already helping to shape stronger services, fairer policies, and better outcomes for our communities. The more space we make for lived experience, the more powerful and effective that change becomes. In that sense, West Kent’s tagline, "Places to live. Space to grow," feels more relevant than ever. This is about the space residents are now being given to contribute and grow with the organisation, not just the homes we live in.
Let's keep making that space, together.
Iain Walters, Resident Ambassador