When I joined Rands in late 2001, I was in my early 20’s, had slightly darker coloured hair, and was the proud owner of a Peugeot 205 with a leaking sunroof! Since then, much has changed. I may be older and have one or two grey hairs, but I no longer need to worry about getting soaked every time I take a left-hand turn.

I was taken on primarily to undertake condition surveys across a variety of locations in Southern England. As other business functions have flourished, stock condition surveys continue to remain a core part of what Rands does, and its place in the industry has become ever more important.

Back in the early 2000’s Stock Condition Surveys were commonplace and happened at scale. In many cases, only a small proportion of a housing stock was considered and the industry was starting to get to grips with the new Decent Homes Standard. The landscape has now changed and has been significantly shaped by a number of events that have occurred over this period. This has rightly meant the scrutiny on asset management data has increased. All of this means we’ve had to raise our game to make the data as reliable as it can be.

Even before the more recent drive by the Regulator of Social Housing to survey all dwellings, this had been something most housing providers were striving to achieve. How to access all dwellings is another challenge the industry has had to face. Over time we have become more organised, offered more access solutions and learnt to work better with housing providers and their residents.

It’s fair to say that advancements in technology have had a huge impact on the world of condition surveys and this is probably the part of the job that has changed most. The move from paper forms has probably been the single biggest advancement for surveyors (and data inputters!).

Some of my earliest memories of completing a stock condition survey project was providing a report to a client, only for it to sit on a dusty shelf or be used to prop open a fire door. Thankfully, this has now come full circle, and for those of us involved in providing asset management data, it’s great to know that it is being used to make a difference. By improving on the quantity and quality of data, clients can understand their stock so much better. With understanding, comes the opportunity to drive efficiencies, targeted improvements, and better homes for residents. However, there is still a long way to go!

More and more will be expected of the stock condition survey in future, and it will need to integrate better with other housing provider data. The expanded use of technology is fundamental to rising to this challenge. We are committed to embracing new technology and will be continuing to expand this in the future. 

At all times, we need to keep in mind who this is for. I passionately believe that by continuing to make these advances, the overall effect will be to give more people a safe and warm place to live.

I also live in hope that one day we might see the comeback of the Peugeot 205!