GLASGOW'S biggest housing provider has promised to revolutionise its customer service thanks to a new 24-hour one-stop call centre.

GLASGOW'S biggest housing provider has promised to revolutionise its customer service thanks to a new 24-hour one-stop call centre.

Glasgow Housing Association, which looks after 90,000 tenants and homeowners across the city, officially launched the hi-tech new service today.

And the association gave the Evening Times a sneak preview of the innovative services on offer.

Staffed by a team of 35 specialist workers - dubbed "resolvers" - bosses say the £1million centre, which was opened by Paralympic gold medal-winning cyclist Aileen McGlynn, will soon be a one-stop shop for all inquiries.

Instead of being passed from pillar to post, each caller will now have queries dealt with by one fully-trained agent from start to finish.

And thanks to a new integrated IT system, for the first time staff will have all information about tenants and the entire GHA network at their fingertips.

Initially the centre, which is based in Crown Street in the Gorbals, will be open from 8am-8pm, seven days a week, dealing with a range of inquiries, complaints and payments. Homeowners can also make use of the service.

However, plans are already afoot to open extend opening times to 24 hours a day, every day, and widen its remit to deal with repairs and advice on benefits.

Eventually more than 100 GHA staff will be based there.

Since first opening for business at the beginning of last month, the centre has already handled more than 20,000 calls.

As reported in the Evening Times last year, GHA was lambasted for failing to look after tenants in a Government inspection report last year.

Association chiefs say they've listened to the criticisms - and will transform how customers are dealt with.

Nancy Brown, GHA's head of customer services, said: "We are all extremely excited about the new centre. We genuinely believe it will transform the way we are able to deal with our customers.

"Not only will we be open for much longer but our staff will be committed to personally dealing with every single query until it is fully resolved.

"We'll no longer be passing people from pillar to post.

"The IT system also allows us to identify trends and gives a greater amount of information than ever before, which we'll be able to use to improve the service even more."

She added: "Customer service is our bread and butter.

"This new investment allows us help people more than ever before, and because of the integrated nature of the service and the extended opening hours we feel it will be particularly helpful to elderly and vulnerable tenants."

The new number will be displayed throughout the GHA network of local housing organisations while frontline staff such as housing officers and concierges have been fully briefed to tell tenants about the service.

According to the centre manager, great care was taken to recruit workers with the right skills, empathy and experience.

Karen Durnian said: "Our interview process was extremely tough and we've recruited the very best of staff for this centre because we are committed to getting it right.

"Every agent at the centre has the right approach to getting the job done, whether it's dealing with a complaint about work done or just talking someone through how to pay rent over the phone."

And it seems the staff are already enjoying the challenges of their new job.

Resolver Lillian Baikie, 38, from Milton, previously worked as a housing officer with GHA in Maryhill.

But she said her new role would allow her to provide a better service for tenants. Lillian added: "I can now do things for people that would have previously been impossible.

"For the first time we've got the time and resources to see things through."

Her colleague Ian Hughes, a GHA tenant as well as employee, has years of customer service experience in the travel industry.

He said: "Because I'm also a tenant, I understand how vital it is for us to get it right.

"I'm really passionate about housing. It's really rewarding when you can take someone's problem and sort it out for them.

"We've all got life experience, and that's key to this job.

"We empathise with the customers, but we're also really focused on sorting things out as quickly as possible."

Another member of staff, Victoria Anderson, 33, of Kilmarnock, added: "We've already had some great feedback from customers.

"They can't believe it when we call them back and explain how we've resolved their problem.

"Some have even called us back to say thanks, which is great.

"That's what keeps our team motivated."

Service's benefits hit home

THE £1million call centre deals with a host of queries and problems for 90,000 tenants and homeowners around the city.

Here are some of the situations they have already been able to resolve since the service opened for business at the beginning of last month.

• An elderly blind man had no heating or hot water and was having to boil water on the stove. Concerned staff immediately got engineers round and the problem was fixed the same day.

• A tenant who moved into her new home over the September weekend discovered there was no electricity in the house. Previously no GHA offices would have been open to deal with the problem, but, thanks to the new call centre's extended opening times, staff were on hand and able to get the power switched on within hours.

• A tenant who was too embarrassed to speak to a GHA representative in person because she could no longer afford to pay her rent, felt able to ring the hotline. Call centre staff were able to work out a payment plan with her over the phone.