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Formal influence

EXPERT SUPPORT

Formal influence

Tpas offers a wide range of advice, guidance and support to ensure formal panels and committees are effective in influencing and scrutinising decisions, strategies, policies and services, and holding organisations to account.

Recruitment

Tpas has a well-established and proven methodology to support recruitment to engagement opportunities, particularly panels and committees, with a focus on maximising expressions of interest and applications, attracting people with key skills, experience and knowledge, and enabling the development of groups that represent residents’ diversity.

We also support organisations to recruit tenants to boards – find out more about our strategic work on our Governance page.

Our offer is tailored to your needs, but we can support you through:

  • Agreeing overall structure and documents to support the process – governance, terms of reference, role descriptions and person specifications
  • Recruitment planning – selection process and criteria, applications, interviews and assessments
  • Recruitment campaign – developing messaging and a targeted approach to encourage interest from a diverse range of residents, using behavioural insights knowledge and experience
  • Tests and interviews – Tpas can act as an independent facilitator through shortlisting, devising, administering and scoring a practical test, and participating in or observing the interview panel and validating scores

Support and development

New committees and panels, and their new members, require induction and onboarding support to succeed. This can include developing individual training plans, providing mentoring, group sessions, an independent chair, and more – all focused on ensuring that people on formal panels and committees are fully prepared, able to meaningfully challenge and influence, get the most out of the role, and continue to develop as individuals and as a group.

Mentoring

An independent mentor offers a safe space to ask questions, raise concerns and access expert advice. It is flexible to suit the individual, and generally includes one-to-one conversations before and after meetings to answer queries, support preparation and reflection, and identify further development opportunities.

Coaching programmes

Developed for individuals or as group sessions, delivered as a series online or face to face, to help individuals and groups determine objectives, agree purpose, set outcomes and enable development.

Independent chair

Tpas can provide an independent chair for an agreed timeframe to enable a new group to develop, alongside support to build the processes and capacity for the group to move to a tenant chair.

Independent review

Independent review, advice and guidance to help panels and committees evaluate progress and continue to develop – including desktop studies of documents and processes, reality-checking interviews with members and partners, observations, and a report identifying themes, good practice and recommendations.

GET IN TOUCH

If you would like to find out more about support to ensure individuals and groups thrive, please email consultancy@tpas.org.uk. One of our National Consultancy Managers would be delighted to chat with you about your requirements, advise the best ways Tpas can help you to achieve your goals, and provide an outline of costs.

Don’t forget — you receive a discount on all our products and services if you are a Tpas member.

EMAIL CONSULTANCY@TPAS.ORG.UK →

Online and tailored training

Our online training programme offers individuals involved in formal panels and committees the opportunity to learn, share and network with other tenants, staff, councillors and board members across the country, without leaving home. Browse the courses on our Online training page.

If you have a number of people who need training, or you are looking for a more tailored course, we can deliver any of our online courses exclusively for your organisation or work with you to develop a bespoke course. Find out more on our Tailored training page.

Don’t forget — you can access all our training at a discounted rate if you are a Tpas member.