Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to revolutionise social housing by enhancing efficiency, improving service delivery, and increasing tenant satisfaction.
However, to fully embrace its potential in our sector, we need to ensure a collaborative effort focused on sharing experiences, knowledge and best practices. Drawing on insights from our recent white paper (Embracing AI in Social Housing: Expert Insights and Frameworks for Success; see voicescape.com), this article explores the vital role of collaboration in successfully integrating AI, highlighting key advice from the report’s expert contributors.
A sector-led approach to AI
In a field that is evolving and expanding as quickly as AI, it’s no secret that traditional regulatory frameworks can often struggle to keep pace. For that reason, there’s a strong argument to be made that the social housing sector must take a proactive role in developing standards and guidelines for AI use. Indeed, relying solely on bodies such as the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) for direct regulation could be seen as impractical given AI’s dynamic nature.
Yorkshire Housing’s CEO, Nick Atkin, summed it up when he explained the crucial need for agility: “A proactive stance is essential. AI evolves so rapidly that official guidance quickly becomes outdated.”
The necessary approach requires a balance of flexibility and readiness to adapt, allowing leaders within the sector to explore AI’s possibilities safely and creatively. As Platform Housing’s CIO, Jon Cocker, highlighted in our report: “It’s not about stifling innovation; it’s about understanding the risks and safe practices.”
What’s more, any guidelines need to work in harmony with social housing’s unique ethical demands and accommodate the rapid pace of technological change. For example, ethical considerations around data privacy and algorithmic bias must be placed at the forefront to maintain trust and integrity.
Taken together, a balanced approach that encourages innovation without being overly prescriptive is needed. Guidance must be flexible and adaptable, encouraging continuous learning and adjustment while remaining relevant and effective as AI technology evolves.
The role of collaboration
Collaboration plays a central role in establishing the types of sector-wide AI guidelines and frameworks we need. After all, cross-sector cooperation is critical to the effective sharing of knowledge and best practices needed to help organisations avoid making the same mistakes and duplicating their efforts.
However, despite advances and positive steps in terms of knowledge-sharing, hurdles remain in achieving the necessary levels of collaboration. Hassan Bahrani, director of IT, cyber and data security at Thirteen Group, said in our report: “Collaboration is improving but it’s still siloed.” These siloes need to be overcome as a priority.
Platform Housing’s Cocker spoke about the necessity of joint efforts, arguing that: “Cross-sector collaboration is key. We need to work together to define what good AI looks like in terms of ethics and applications.”
At the same time, there is also a challenge in ensuring guidelines are applicable across diverse organisations with significantly different challenges and landscapes. Thirteen’s Bahrani stressed the difficulty of a one-size-fits-all approach: “Certain housing providers excel in data governance, for example, but their methods can’t always be replicated elsewhere.”
The importance of internal collaboration
Successful AI integration into social housing also demands a concerted collaborative effort within organisations. To have a real impact and buy-in, AI initiatives need to align with broader business outcomes and reflect the collective insights and needs of various departments.
Platform Housing’s Cocker emphasised a holistic approach: “AI frameworks shouldn’t only be technology-driven. Our guidance involves input from HR, governance and other departments.” This approach ensures that AI governance reflects an organisation’s collective wisdom, rather than being the sole purview of, say, the technology department.
Siobhan Weightman, board member for Women In Social Housing (WISH) North East, stressed: “A strong strategic direction and a clear purpose are both essential. Everyone must know their role in delivering that vision.” After all, prioritising AI at the highest levels can help fast-track positive changes in social housing.
By establishing a collaborative roadmap right across the organisation, housing providers can foster a unified approach to AI projects that elevates them from isolated initiatives into coordinated, integral components of their respective overall missions. Ideally, the framework should take the form of a strategic document and a commitment to shared problem-solving and open communication.
Leveraging supplier knowledge & innovation
Suppliers also play an important role in sharing knowledge and innovations within the sector. They’re often at the forefront of technological advances and can provide valuable insights and solutions, often based on practical applications. Thirteen’s Bahrani acknowledged their contribution: “Suppliers such as Voicescape lead in sharing knowledge; their insights are invaluable.”
By fostering strong relationships with suppliers, housing providers can stay updated on the latest developments and leverage cutting-edge AI technologies to improve their operations. This collaboration enhances the sector’s overall capabilities and ensures that AI solutions are geared up to the specific needs and goals of our sector.
Creating a formal forum for collaboration
The ultimate ambition for the sector should be a more formal sector-led forum for collaboration. Platform Housing’s Cocker envisioned: “A sector-wide body should lead AI discussions, creating a central platform for sharing knowledge and best practices.”
By establishing such a forum, our sector can create a centralised platform for sharing knowledge, best practices and innovations. This enhances the overall capabilities of the sector and ensures that AI solutions are aligned with the specific needs and goals of social housing.
In the meantime, there is a growing number of tools and platforms available to support social housing professionals in sharing their AI experiences and learnings. These knowledge-sharing resources offer both immediate support to organisations taking their first or next steps in embedding AI as well as establishing the foundations for more formal collaboration forums in the future.
For example, our report delivers comprehensive insights and advice from leading experts alongside examples of best-practice AI principles that housing providers can adapt into their own approaches.
A shared future
The integration of AI into social housing presents both challenges and opportunities. A sector-led approach, focused on collaboration both within and between organisations, is essential for developing flexible, ethical and effective AI frameworks.
By fostering continuous dialogue, sharing knowledge and maintaining a clear strategic focus, the social housing sector can harness the full potential of AI to better serve its communities.
Gary Haynes is the managing director of Voicescape. Voicescape’s whitepaper, ‘Embracing AI in Social Housing: Expert Insights and Frameworks for Success’, is available to download now from voicescape.com.
