New consumer standards for social housing

Here we will provide you with the latest updates and some of the key areas of changes to social housing and how you can get involved!

Introduction

Following the tragic Grenfell Tower fire in 2017, the Government committed to changes to the consumer regulation of social housing to strengthen the accountability of landlords for providing safe homes, quality services and treating residents with respect.

New changes to how we are regulated on our social housing

From 1 April there will be a new approach to how we, as a social landlord, are regulated on our social housing. Until now we have been subject to a series of standards including tenant involvement, repairs, Decent Homes and Anti-Social Behaviour. 

The approach taken has changed and the Regulator of Social Housing will take a proactive interest in how we meet these standards. This will include us reporting on our performance on the Tenant Satisfaction Measures, and the Regulator conducting inspections, probably every four years. In addition, the standards have been updated to cover a stronger emphasis on resident voice, taking account of individual needs and repairs. Following an inspection, we will be awarded a grading, on a 1 – 4 basis, of how well we meet these standards.

As part of our response to these changes, we have set up a Housing Services Group including councillors, officers and tenants, which will meet regularly to discuss issues raised by residents through community-level activity, and new groups covering tenant scrutiny, Housing for Older People, Repairs and Home Ownership. We would welcome residents who are interested in our performance and how it can be improved into these groups. 

As a social housing provider, we will be subject to four yearly inspections by the Regulator, who will grade us based on how well we are meeting the requirements of the new consumer standards.

The new standards ensure we will continue to:

• ensure our tenants are safe in their homes
• listen to our tenants’ complaints and respond promptly to put things right
• be accountable to our tenants and treat them with fairness and respect
• know more about the condition of every home and the needs of the people who live in them
• collect and use data effectively across a range of areas, including repairs

Social Housing (Regulation) Act

From 1 April 2024, there will be 5 new consumer standards that will set the requirements all registered providers must meet:

• The Safety and Quality Standard – requires landlords to provide safe and good quality homes and landlord services to tenants. 
• The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard – requires landlords to be open with tenants and treat them with fairness and respect so that tenants can access services, raise complaints when necessary, influence decision-making and hold their landlord to account. 
• The Neighbourhood and Community Standard – requires landlords to engage with other relevant parties so that tenants can live in safe and well-maintained neighbourhoods and feel safe in their homes.
• The Tenancy Standard – sets requirements for the fair allocation and letting of homes and for how those tenancies are managed and ended by landlords. 
• Tenant Satisfaction Methods (TSMs) – requires landlords to provide certain information to the Regulator of Social Housing based on resident feedback, such as repairs, safety checks and complaints.

Consumer standards consultation

Full details on the standards can be found on GOV.UK