New chairman for tenants' forum.

The group that represents nearly 6000 council tenants in Moray has a new chairman.

Katy Holmes (pictured) was appointed at the annual general meeting of the Moray Tenants’ Forum.

She has been a Moray Council tenant for nearly 20 years and was previously vice-chairman of the forum.

“It is an exciting time to get involved and I hope that tenants will come along to our meetings so they can have a say about housing services,” she said.

“Our meetings are informal and friendly and anyone who is a council tenant is welcome to join us.”

The next meeting of the Moray Tenants’ Forum is in Elgin on June 21 and any tenants who would like to attend need not worry about their expenses since help is available to cover such things as travel costs and childcare.

By becoming involved tenants also have access to free training opportunities which may be of interest to those looking to develop their skills or enhance their CV.

Katy said: “I recently took part in a training programme and since then we have set up a service improvement panel to inspect aspects of the housing service. We are now using the training to prepare for our first scrutiny exercise.”

Councillor George Alexander, who chairs Moray Council’s communities committee, said: “I am delighted to welcome Katy Holmes as the new chairman of the tenants’ forum and I have no doubt that she will do a very good job representing the interests of all our tenants.

“I would strongly encourage other tenants to become involved in the forum and to help shape the future of housing services here in Moray.”

Tenants who would like to attend the next forum meeting or who would like more information on how they can have their say should call 0300 123 4566 or e-mail housing@moray.gov.uk