Case Study - Leeds Federated Origin2

Leeds Federated Housing Association

Leeds Federated Housing Association (LFHA) was formed in 1974 by a number of smaller associations coming together to form a 'federation' for the benefit of the community. The idea was that by working together they could achieve more than being separate organisations.

Who are Leeds Federated?

Leeds Fed are a housing association offering affordable housing to customers with around 4,300 properties based in and around the Leeds area. Breeze have supplied Leeds Fed with numerous bespoke software solutions through partnering agreements since 2004.

How did it start off?

In 2017 Breeze submitted a successful response to develop Origin2; a bespoke system that replaces their Civica ‘Contact Manager’ (W2) system. The system delivered was to become a crucial part of their housing management ‘ecosystem’, their central repository of customer related data and would facilitate Leeds Federated’s specific housing management processes.

How was Breeze involved?

As long-time partners of Leeds Federated, Breeze were able to play a significant and proactive role throughout the project lifecycle from scope definition, development and on to implementation and subsequent support. This included positive contributions to discussions focussed on business processes and practices.

Scope of Development

Comprehensive CRM functionality that allows users to manage in-depth customer information and use it to communicate with their tenants using emails, SMS, letters or even make/take phone calls (with optional call scripts) and record outcomes from them. Additionally, Origin2 provides the ability to raise and manage cases to support the following areas of the business:

  • Arrears
  • Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB)
  • Complaints
  • Financial Inclusion
  • Hoarding
  • Lettings
  • Mutual Exchanges (MX)
  • Repairs
  • Risk Assessments
  • Safeguarding

The scope included an enhancement of the existing Breeze developed 'Origin' application; a feature rich Android app that extends the CRM functionality to field-based staff, supported with a comprehensive form building function and allows for legally admissible electronic signatures for tenancy agreements and alike.

In addition to the functionality outlined above, the project necessitated seamless real-time integration with numerous existing Leeds Fed applications and third-party tools including Docuware and Keyfax.

The Journey

 
Replacing W2 journey...
 

Outcome

After meticulous planning and testing, Origin2 went live in May 2021 and has received overwhelmingly positive feedback. Naturally, for a project of this magnitude there were some minor unforeseen teething issues, but Breeze were able to respond promptly and rectify issues to minimise business impact.

Arguably it was a bold move by Leeds Federated to embark on a bespoke solution, however now that it is live, there are few who would regret the decision.

The implementation was just the first step on the Origin2 journey. This software belongs to Leeds Federated and the nature of bespoke development means that we will be able to work together in a timely-manner to further enhance the product as the business evolves, inefficiencies are identified or in response to imposed legislative changes.

More information…?

It's difficult to convey the scale of this development within a case study. If you require more detailed information, feel free to get in touch.

I know that Breeze put an unbelievable amount of work into Origin2. It's a great system. I'm regularly told that by new starters because they really like the intuitive UI and find it very easy to get up and running.
Stephen Blundell, Director of Operations - Leeds Federated Housing Association