We are one of the first UK social landlords to automate Universal Credit updates, delivering faster support for customers whilst freeing staff to focus on what matters most.

Imagine waiting over a month to find out if your housing costs will be paid correctly. That has been the reality for thousands of Universal Credit recipients in social housing, until now.

We have become one of the first social landlords in the UK to revolutionise this process, slashing processing time from five weeks to just 10 hours through a groundbreaking automation solution developed with Infinity Group's BRIKHousing team.

The human impact behind the numbers

Every year, we process over 3,000 rent verifications for customers receiving Universal Credit. Previously, one staff member would spend five weeks manually updating each change on the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) portal, a painstaking process that left customers waiting and wondering about their housing costs.

"We watched our rent support team spend countless hours on repetitive data entry while customers waited for answers about their most basic need: their home," said Chris Featherstone, Head of Operations (Finance). "Now, what used to take one person five weeks of tedious work happens automatically in 10 hours. Our staff can focus on actually helping people instead of manual data processing.

"This is about more than just saving time, it’s about giving our customers peace of mind. They get accurate benefit calculations faster and our teams can spend quality time with people who need support rather than drowning in paperwork.”

How the change happened

The transformation began when Infinity Group, working with North Star Housing Group, developed a solution using Microsoft's Desktop Automate technology. Rather than forcing staff to manually upload thousands of rent changes, the system handles 350 updates per hour automatically.

Since April, we have automated 65% of our annual rent submissions, with plans to increase this significantly through better data preparation. We manage more than 7,000 homes across Runcorn, Widnes and the Northwest.

Paul Croston, Director of Technology, Digital & Data, explained the broader impact:

“This is a brilliant example of deploying technology that delivers directly for our customers to give them the assurance they need, quicker than ever before, whilst also delivering major benefits to our colleagues.”

Why this matters now

The old manual process wasn't just slow, it was risky. Human errors in calculations could leave customers facing unexpected arrears or incorrect benefit amounts. The new system eliminates these mistakes whilst creating a complete audit trail for every case processed.

"We've discovered data errors we never would have caught before," added Chris Featherstone. "The system has become our safety net, protecting both customers and our organisation from costly mistakes."

Leading the way for others

Sarah McRow, Head of Housing Sales at Infinity Group, sees this as a blueprint for the entire sector: "We are showing what's possible when you put customers first. Other housing providers are watching closely because they're facing the same challenges – overworked staff, frustrated customers and error-prone manual processes."

The solution addresses a problem every social landlord faces: the annual requirement to verify rent and occupancy details with the DWP for Universal Credit recipients. Until now, most have accepted the manual burden as inevitable.

The bigger picture

This breakthrough reflects Infinity Group's mission to help social landlords do more with less through Microsoft technologies including Dynamics 365, Microsoft 365, and Azure. With more than 190,000 homes now managed through BRIKHousing solutions and 96% customer satisfaction, the company is proving that the right technology can transform how housing providers serve their communities.

"We're not just automating processes," said Sarah McRow. "We're freeing housing professionals to do what they do best: support people in their homes. When technology handles the tedious work, human expertise can focus on human needs."

What's next

We plan to expand automation to cover even more of our annual submissions, with the goal of making manual rent processing a thing of the past.

For the 3,000 customers whose rent changes will be processed this year, the difference is clear: faster, more accurate service that gives them confidence in their housing costs and Universal Credit award.

"This really is what innovation with purpose looks like in social housing," concluded Paul Croston. "Technology that makes life better for customers and for our teams."