Liberating Leaders conducted a six-week project focusing on three housing estates with diverse challenges. By engaging stakeholders and residents in one-on-one and group conversations, we identified key insights:

• Leadership Disconnect: Decisions at the executive level missed subtle but impactful opportunities to improve relationships with residents.
• Overlooked Frontline Staff: Frontline staff, despite being well-positioned to make a difference, were often excluded from decision-making processes.
• Resident Trust: Trust had diminished due to broken promises, but once residents were meaningfully engaged, they were open to collaborating on solutions.

Based on these insights, we introduced a pilot scheme to test a community-driven approach. Actions included:

• Developing a new communication strategy to rebuild trust and transparency.
• Implementing frontline-led initiatives to empower staff and foster community engagement.
• Identifying small but effective actions to reinforce good practices.

The Housing Association successfully reframed its approach to community engagement, achieving the following:

• Rebuilt trust through improved communication and consistent actions.
• Greater resident involvement in co-creating solutions, leading to a more collaborative environment.
• Empowered frontline staff to take ownership of community relationships.