Residents are invited to a free family fun day at Clacton’s Rush Green Recreation Ground, with a packed programme of activities for children, opportunities to access support services and ways for tenants to get more involved in their communities.

Tendring District Council’s (TDC) Housing Tenant Involvement Team will be running the event, which will feature a range of attractions including a bouncy castle and soft play, mini Shetland ponies, a face painter, live music and sports activities, on Wednesday, 29 July, from 10am to 4pm.

A number of support organisations are also expected to attend, including Peabody, Bill Clinic, Parents 1st, Essex Police and Essex County Fire and Rescue Service, helping to make the day both enjoyable and informative.

As well as offering a great day out for families, the event will give residents and council tenants the chance to speak to services face to face, find out more about local support and learn how they can help shape housing and community services through tenant involvement.

Andy Baker, Tendring District Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning, said: “We want this event to be a welcoming and enjoyable day for tenants and their families, while also creating meaningful opportunities for us to engage directly with our residents.

“It is important that people feel heard, know what support is available and understand how they can help shape the services and communities around them.

“By bringing support agencies together in one place, we hope to make it easier for families to access help and find out how they can play a more active role in their communities and in tenant involvement.

“Tenant involvement is at the heart of how we deliver housing services in Tendring, and we welcome all tenants and leaseholders who want to help shape those services.

“We are proud to have retained more than 3,000 council homes and 450 leasehold properties at a time when many authorities have not. As the largest provider of social housing in Tendring, we take that responsibility seriously.

“We hope residents will come along, enjoy the activities on offer and take the opportunity to speak to us and our partner organisations.”

Tenant Panel chair Carol McDougall said: “This event is a great opportunity for tenants and families to come together, enjoy the activities on offer and have informal conversations about the services and support available to them.

“The Tenant Panel is about making sure residents’ views and experiences are heard, and days like this help show that getting involved can be friendly, practical and worthwhile.”

The event forms part of the council’s wider work to strengthen tenant involvement, bring services closer to residents in a relaxed and accessible setting, and gather feedback on how services can be improved.

It will also help raise awareness of estate walkabouts, drop-ins and other ways residents can engage with housing and community services.

The day will also highlight opportunities such as the Tenant Panel, which is made up of volunteers from a wide range of backgrounds and works closely with TDC to help ensure housing services reflect the tenant experience. The aim is to encourage new members to get involved, including younger tenants who want to help shape how the housing service is run.

Tenants and leaseholders who want to help shape our housing services are invited to complete a short online application form. To get involved, click here.

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