Newton Property Management has received the Customer Service Excellence standard, making it the only private residential, Scottish-owned property factor to get the accreditation which has been introduced by the UK Government.
Newton, which runs roughly 40,000 Scottish properties, gained the nationally-recognised Customer Service Excellence (CSE) standard after an independent review of its customer service strategies, systems and performance.
The CSE standard assesses organisations across five areas: customer insight, organisational culture, information and access, delivery and engagement with customers. The assessment constitutes evidence gathering, performance data and connection with customers, staff and contractors.
Each year, Newton will now be audited to make sure it maintains its adherence to the standard and shows continued improvement.
Spearheading the assessment process was Lewis Littlejohn, head of Property Management at Newton, who said: “Good customer service in factoring isn’t just about being responsive, it’s about being straight with homeowners and helping them understand that most decisions in a shared building sit with them, not us.
“Our job is to guide, support and communicate clearly, making sure things get done and owners are kept in the loop.
“This accreditation is no mean feat, it reflects the culture and systems we’ve built to support continuous improvement across the business, but ultimately, it’s our people who deliver that service every day.”
Newton added: “We’ve built a genuinely solid team here at Newton, and I’m really proud of the people we have and the culture that’s grown around them.
“Accreditations like this only mean something because of the staff behind them, their skills, their consistency, their personalities and the care they put into every interaction with homeowners.”
Vincent Goldie, chief executive officer at Newton Property Management, said: “Achieving the Customer Service Excellence standard is a major milestone for Newton and a proud moment for the whole team.
“Property factoring is a sector that is often heavily scrutinised, and we know that trust and communication are critical for homeowners.”
Goldie added: “This recognition gives independent validation of the work we have been doing to strengthen the customer experience across every part of the business and highlights our commitment to raising the standards across the property factoring sector.”
Originally formed by the Cabinet Office, the Customer Service Excellence standard is now operated under a Certification Mark.
Founded in 2001 by Stephen O’Neill, Newton Property Management is active across Scotland, with regional offices in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Greenock.
