Here's an idea

We thought of having a "Walkabout" as a way to boost staff morale – to get people out of their offices – and to meet the tenants we serve.

It's been such a success that we're now running it as an annual event. It wasn't a door-knocking exercise or a community meeting with a rigid agenda – it was simply a means for informally meeting with residents and seeing the estate first hand.

We advertised the venues and route in our quarterly tenant's newsletter and in the local press and on the radio. It cost £800 to promote the event, and this was borne by Signpost because we thought that even if it didn't work, at least our services would be widely publicised.

On the day, 12 staff took part and we met more than 100 people. It was definitely worth it. Issues were brought to light that wouldn't necessarily have been picked up on by housing officers on their visits, such as problems with litter.

It also meant that time was put aside for housing officers to actually spend walking around their patch. Before this, officers would only go out if they identified a problem.

We expanded this year's Walkabout by setting up a project team to get feedback from the first event. It was suggested that more community groups should be invited to come along, so we invited the police, local council, Disability Action Group and fire service, who could also benefit from seeing the estates and talking to the residents.

We also took our mobile office with us – not only would it provide shelter if it rained, but it was also a good facility to put up leaflets, posters and hold meetings.

The additional challenge in this second Walkabout was to go to towns outside north Dorset where the association has a number of properties – for example Weymouth, Bournemouth, Exeter, Plymouth and Crediton.

Once again the Walkabout was a huge success. Feedback from the tenants shows that 79% of those who attended thought the day was excellent or good. Plans are under way for next year's Walkabout.