Halton Housing builds a better employee experience with IRIS Cascade  

Halton Housing is an innovative housing provider with over 7,000 homes across Cheshire and the North West. Ten years ago, the organisation needed a reliable, cost-effective system to streamline HR processes, support recruitment, and enable a fully digital, paper-free approach. 

To achieve this, Halton Housing has relied on Cascade by IRIS, using its functionality for HR management and recruitment. The system has helped the team digitise processes, track recruitment and onboarding from entry to exit, and provide clear reporting, all while improving the overall employee experience. 

From paper-based to fully digital 

When Tracy Fairclough, Head of HR, joined Halton Housing ten years ago, one of her first priorities was implementing Cascade, replacing the previous HR system which wasn’t supporting the team. Tracy led the roll out and adoption across the organisation, ensuring processes moved smoothly from paper to digital!  

“We’ve been digital-first since 2017,” Tracy explains. “We’ve eliminated paper entirely – from contract changes to performance management. It was a critical move for us, especially when COVID hit, because we could continue functioning without being office-based. Cascade enabled us to track everything digitally, from recruitment to exit.” 

Recruitment and onboarding made simple 

Halton Housing uses Cascade for HR and recruitment, integrating with IRIS Recruitment Services. This integration has improved the candidate and employee experience by standardising processes from application to onboarding and probation. 

“We absolutely see the value of integration,” says Tracy. “It allows us to track probation, onboarding, and user experience in one system. It’s about making the journey seamless from entry to exit.” 

Driving adoption through support and training 

Tracy emphasises that user engagement is key to realising Cascade’s full potential, particularly for staff who may be less tech-savvy. 

“For some of our workforce, mobile and digital systems were new territory,” she explains. “A lot of them were used to booking holiday via a conversation with their manager, so moving to a digital system felt very different. We run sessions where we sit down with staff, show them how to do things, and once they do it themselves, they’re sold. It’s about understanding barriers and giving people the confidence to use the system, and once they see how easy it is, they can really see the benefits.” 

This hands-on approach ensures that employees feel comfortable using the system, increasing adoption across the organisation. 

Strategic partnership with account management 

A major factor in Halton Housing’s success has been the proactive support from their account manager at IRIS.  

“Our account manager has really helped us take the system to another level,” says Tracy. “From sourcing reward platforms to API integration, she has been instrumental in helping us maximise the value we get from Cascade. It feels like a genuine partnership, and an extension of our team. We solve issues together, and I know she’s there if I need her.”  

Cost-effective, functional, and reliable 

For Halton Housing, Cascade delivers exactly what they need: functionality, value for money, and strong reporting capabilities. 

“We work in a housing association, so we have to be careful with spending,” Tracy explains. “Cascade is cost-effective but also delivers everything we need – HR processes, recruitment, reporting. It’s practical, functional, and reliable.” 

Cascade’s reporting tools allow Halton to generate compliance audits, HR status updates, and manager reports efficiently, saving time and improving visibility across the organisation. 

A future-ready HR solution 

Halton Housing continues to optimise its Cascade usage, exploring integrations with learning management systems and benefits platforms to further enhance employee experience and efficiency. 

“We’ve been using Cascade for almost ten years now, and it’s become a really vital bit of software within our organisation,” says Tracy. “It’s reliable, cost-effective, and scalable – exactly what an organisation like ours needs. I would absolutely recommend the software and the team behind it.”