Testimonial

Muircroft Housing Association

Following the appointment of Director Duncan Clark in August 2024, Muircroft Housing Association began reviewing its data management and service delivery to identify opportunities for future growth.

Identifying the need for change

Muircroft is a small, community-based housing association founded in 1971 by the Hythe Rotary Club. The organisation provides social housing for people aged 60 and above in the New Forest area of Hampshire. In August 2024, Duncan Clark was appointed Director. One of Duncan’s first priorities was to review how the organisation managed its data. He conducted an evaluation of existing services and the data used to deliver them, as well as the data requirements Muircroft needed to explore opportunities for future growth.

The review highlighted that, while Muircroft H.A. consistently delivered excellent customer service, there was no digital offering available for tenants. Although many tenants expressed a preference for paper-based communication, the opportunity of introducing digital channels would allow Muircroft H.A. to offer a more personalised service, giving tenants the choice of how they engage in the future. This would also enable the organisation to reach a wider community as services grow.

In addition, digital transformation would enhance the speed and flexibility of communication in urgent situations. For instance, in December 2024, a local water supply issue left residents without water for three days. Having the ability to send emergency updates via SMS would have ensured tenants were kept informed promptly.

A review of the IT systems revealed a common challenge; each solution operated in isolation. While the data within these systems was accurate, staff needed to know exactly where to look to retrieve it, often relying on colleagues with specialist knowledge. This unconnected approach made even basic reporting difficult, with no way to combine data across platforms or enforce consistent data formats.

As a result, producing KPI’s such as void or day-to-day repairs performance required significant manual effort. Staff could eventually extract detailed answers, but only after lengthy delays and dependencies on others. The issue was never data quality, it was accessibility.

From these findings, it was clear that while the legacy systems functioned, they lacked the efficiency and visibility Muircroft H.A. required. A more integrated approach was needed, one that could consolidate information into a single source of truth and provide a global overview of operations. Strategically, this shift was essential to improve reporting, streamline management processes, and support data-driven decision-making across the organisation.

Identifying the Right Solution

Having concluded that a new management system was required, Muircroft H.A. began exploring potential solutions by consulting with other housing associations. From these discussions, they identified several possible suppliers and invited them to deliver in-depth demonstrations of their systems, supported by detailed fact-finding sessions. Based on factors such as usability and the frequency of software updates, Muircroft H.A. shortlisted two suppliers to present their proposals to the board.

Following the evaluation process, Muircroft H.A. selected OmniLedger’s PyramidG2 Housing Management System as their preferred solution. Although pricing and contractual terms were similar across both shortlisted suppliers, PyramidG2 stood out during the demonstrations by addressing several of Muircroft H.A.’s key operational challenges, including:

Providing operational KPI reporting through an intuitive dashboard
Offering a comprehensive suite of standard reports
Delivering a full view of planned maintenance life cycles across all properties

In addition, PyramidG2 was already successfully implemented by other housing associations. This allowed Muircroft H.A. to conduct site visits, observe the system in a live environment, and speak directly with existing users to gain confidence in their decision.

Muircroft Tenant Details — Example Tenant Record showing their rent history [Fabricated example data]

Muircroft Dashboard — Example Rents Dashboard [Fabricated example data]

Muircroft Property — Example property record showing recorded cyclical and asset items [Fabricated example data]

Implementing PyramidG2

Once Muircroft H.A. confirmed their decision to move forward with PyramidG2, they were assigned a dedicated Project Manager, Nicola, who guided them through every stage of the implementation. Drawing on previous experience, Muircroft H.A. understood that migrating to a new system could present challenges, particularly with data extraction. However, they chose to view this as an opportunity to verify and cleanse their data as it was entered into the PyramidG2 import templates.

The project timeline was intentionally flexible, which helped make the process smoother and less stressful. The data templates were clear and easy to use, simplifying the input process, while Nicola oversaw the full data migration to ensure accuracy and completeness.

The first phase of the project focused on going live with repairs. After importing the data and completing staff training, any initial teething issues were quickly resolved. Nicola remained on hand to answer follow-up questions, and the OmniLedger Support Team promptly addressed technical queries, all without any additional consultancy costs.

Throughout the process, both teams worked collaboratively, setting realistic expectations and maintaining practical communication. For Muircroft H.A., working with OmniLedger has proven to be a positive and productive partnership.

With the repairs module successfully in place, Muircroft H.A. moved on to implementing the rents module as the second phase of the project. Following the same structured approach (importing data and conducting staff training) the team went live smoothly and processed their first rent charges in June 2025. As with the repairs module, a few post-training questions arose, but Nicola was readily available to provide guidance and ensure a seamless onboarding experience for the team.

Shortly after the rents module went live, Muircroft H.A. implemented the SMS module and QS workflows, providing tenants with an intelligent 24/7 text messaging service. This enhancement allows tenants to communicate digitally according to their preferred methods, while ensuring that traditional paper-based letters and statements remain available for those who prefer them.

Looking ahead

Moving forward, Muircroft H.A. plan to adopt additional areas of the PyramidG2 system, including:

Loading recent stock condition data to help inform future investment decisions and decent homes monitoring
Digitising existing paper forms through Pyramid Mobile
Implementing the financials modules, including the creation of a 10-year strategic plan within the system
Using the Waiting and Allocations module to manage lettings to their homes.
Using the Support module to transform the paper and manual based systems in place for delivering housing support

With a robust, fully integrated software solution in place, extracting data and producing reports is no longer a challenge. Muircroft H.A. now have a strong foundation to streamline operations, make data-driven decisions, and support future growth. The organisations priority is to now manage and use the data effectively to improve services to tenants.

Author

Eric Lau

Responsible for OmniLedger’s marketing strategy and implementation, I also contribute to product development through UX research and software design, helping shape solutions that meet the evolving needs of the UK social housing sector.

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Want to know more about how PyramidG2 Housing Management Solutions can digitally transform your organisation? Get in touch with our consultants today. Your free consultation will include an overview of your business requirements, how you handle your data, a demonstration of PyramidG2 and next recommended steps.