Right to Buy sales Official Statistics consultation
Updated 20 July 2022
Applies to England
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/right-to-buy-sales-statistics-proposed-changes/right-to-buy-sales-official-statistics-consultation
Scope of the consultation
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is looking at how statistical releases on social housing sales are published, moving towards a more coherent and easier to understand set of publications.
Currently the department produces a quarterly Official Statistics release reporting the number of Right to Buy sales from Local Authorities which are subject to pooling of capital receipts.
As part of changes to the Right to Buy one-for-one receipts policy, which were put to consultation with Local Authorities in autumn 2018, there will be changes to the data collection which Local Authorities complete on a quarterly and yearly basis.
These changes will lead to a reduction in the amount of data available on a quarterly basis, which will no longer be published as Official Statistics. Non-audited data on the number of sales and the number of starts and acquisitions will be published quarterly as management information and the current quarterly data on receipts will no longer be included. More in-depth audited data will be published as Official Statistics on a yearly basis which will include receipts from Right to Buy sales.
We would like to take this opportunity to get feedback from users on how they use the information and how they would like to see future information presented. This is not a consultation on the Right to Buy policy itself.
Topic of this consultation
This consultation seeks the views on the proposed changes to the quarterly Right to Buy sales Official Statistics and for its content to change to a yearly Official Statistics publication with quarterly management information.
Scope of this consultation
We are looking at how best to meet users’ needs in a way that reduces the burden on the local authorities who provide the data while ensuring that timely, useful figures are published regularly.
We welcome feedback as part of our continuous effort to improve our statistical output. This can be done by contacting the department at Housing.Statistics@communities.gov.uk.
Geographical scope
These proposals relate to statistics for England only.
Impact assessment
As this is a technical consultation relating to the Department’s statistical activity, there is no requirement for an impact assessment.
Basic information
Body/bodies responsible for the consultation
Housing and Planning Analysis Division of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Duration
This consultation will last 2 months from 15 July 2021.
Enquiries
For any enquiries about the consultation please contact: Housing.Statistics@communities.gov.uk.
How to respond
You may respond by emailing your response to the questions in this consultation to Housing.Statistics@communities.gov.uk.
If you are responding in writing, please make it clear which questions you are responding to.
Written responses should be sent to:
Right to Buy Statistics Consultation
Housing and Planning Analysis Division
MHCLG
4th Floor, Fry Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF
When you reply please state whether you are replying as an individual or submitting an official response on behalf of an organisation and include:
- your name
- your position (if applicable)
- the name of organisation (if applicable)
- an address (including post-code)
- an email address
- a contact telephone number
1. Introduction
1. This document invites comments on the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s (MHCLG) proposals for the future production of the Right to Buy Sales statistical bulletin.
2. The Right to Buy sales statistical bulletin is published quarterly as Official Statistics with the June/July release also providing a yearly commentary. It reports on the number of local authority properties which are sold through the Right to Buy (Right to Buy: buying your council home).
3. MHCLG has a statutory duty, in accordance with the Statistics and Registration Act 2007, to ensure its statistics meets user needs and engage users on changes to the department’s statistical output. This consultation addresses the requirement for producers of Official Statistics to consult users where major changes are proposed.
4. We review here the current reporting scheme for Right to Buy Sales data and propose how this scheme may be improved to better meet user needs.
2. The current data collection and statistical publication system for Right to Buy sales
5. The Right to Buy sales Official Statistics bulletin is currently published 2-3 months after the end of the corresponding quarter to which it relates. The data for Right to Buy sales are taken from the Pooling of capital receipts returns on the MHCLG-run DELTA system. DELTA is a form-driven system for local authorities to report sales and financial information on Right to Buy sales which are subject to receipt pooling requirements.
6. Each quarter audited information is published on:
a. Number of applicable Right to Buy sales by each local authority (Table 691)
b. Total receipts generated by these sales (Table 692)
c. Total starts and acquisitions of properties by local authorities funded through Right to Buy receipts in the one-for-one replacement agreement (Table 693)
7. The Pooling of capitals receipts return is not the only source of data for Right to Buy receipts as by design it does not include some local authorities and some types of sales. The pooling of capital receipts does not include:
a. Sales by private registered providers through the Voluntary Right to Buy or Preserved Right to Buy schemes
b. Sales by local authorities which do not own a Housing Revenue Account (HRA)
c. Right to Buy sales of dwellings which, although accounted for in the Housing Revenue Account, are the subject of an agreement made either under section 80B of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 (as inserted by section 313 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008 and now repealed) or under section 11(6) of the Local Government Act 2003 (as inserted by section 174 of the Localism Act 2011)
but it does include:
d. Sales of shared ownership through the Right to Buy where the portion of the market value paid by the purchaser within the first 2 years is more than 50%
e. Sales at less than market value of dwellings accounted for in the Housing Revenue Account to secure tenants of a local authority, even when those sales are not strictly under Right to Buy
8. The Local Authority Housing Statistics (LAHS) return and the Statistical Data Return (SDR) collect data on Right to Buy Sales by all local authorities and private registered providers (PRPs). These data are published annually in the Social Housing Sales Official Statistics bulletin. Due to the complexity of the forms and the time required to complete, collect, quality-assure and process, this is released around 8 months after the end of the corresponding financial year.
3. Changes to the data collection and statistical publication system for Right to Buy sales
9. As part of an agreement between local authorities and the government, the scale of the Pooling of capital receipts returns is reducing for quarterly data to reduce the reporting burden for councils. Quarterly returns will no longer contain audited data on the receipts from Right to Buy sales but will include non-audited data on the number of sales and number of one-for-one replacements. This change from audited to non-audited data reduces the quality assurance of the quarterly data and we therefore do not consider it robust enough to be published as Official Statistics and will instead publish it as management information.
10. This quarterly published management information will include only data on the number of sales and number of starts on site and acquisitions as part of the one-for-one replacement. It will separate the starts on site from the acquisitions, which is not currently published in Live Table 693. Pending final agreement between local authorities and the department, we intend that from from 2022-23 Q1 (Apr-Jun 2022) onwards, the acquisitions using Right to Buy one-for-one receipts will be broken down into acquisitions which are subject to the acquisition cap and those that are not.
11. We intend to introduce the following in a new data collection annually, subject to final agreement between local authorities and the department:
a. Type of sale which is subject to pooling, broken down by:
i. Right to Buy sale
ii. Sales of a shared ownership lease of a dwelling accounted for in the Housing Revenue Account for which the premium (i.e. a portion of the market value of the dwelling) paid by the purchaser within 2 years exceeded 50% of the market value
iii. Sales at less than market value of dwellings accounted for in the Housing Revenue Account to secure tenants of a local authority, but not via the Right to Buy process
b. Receipts collected through the sales of these properties
c. Starts on site and acquisitions of new properties using Right to Buy one-for-one receipts. These will be broken down by:
i. Type of new dwelling acquired/started:
- Social Rent
- Affordable Rent
- Shared Ownership
- First Homes
ii. Type of acquisition:
- Acquisition from a local authority’s own housing company
- Acquisitions from regeneration projects
- Acquisition of ex-local authority properties
- Acquisition of general market new-build properties
- Other acquisitions
12. The annual publication will continue to be published as Official Statistics and will be released in June/July each year. It will report on all sales, receipts and starts/acquisitions, as the current bulletin does quarterly, with breakdowns published by local authority and region. This will allow for a continuation of tables 691, 692 and 693, although the data for 2021-22 onwards will be annual rather than quarterly.
13. The complete Right to Buy sales information, including sales by local authorities not covered by pooling and sales by PRPs will continue to be published in the Social Housing sales bulletin in autumn/winter as detailed in paragraph 8. These data will be collected in the Local Authority Housing Statistics (LAHS) return.
4. Meeting user needs
14. Users of these statistics include ministers and officials at MHCLG and other government departments and agencies, local government, local government associations, academics, media, community and campaign groups, as well as interested members of the public.
15. The statistics are used to understand the effect of the Right to Buy policy on home ownership, the supply of affordable housing, and local authorities and the housing market more generally.
16. The main aim of this consultation is to understand users’ interest in the data which will be collected as described above, and which particular breakdowns users most want covered in the now-annual Official Statistics release and the new quarterly management information publication. Due to the complexity of the data, the intention is to publish the most useful breakdowns and to have the remaining detail available in open data files and on request.
5. Consultation questions
- Which user group most represents your situation?
- What do you currently use the Right to Buy sales bulletin for?
- What do you currently use the Right to Buy sales data tables for?
- Based on the data collection changes described above, what you would like to see from the proposed annual Official Statistical bulletin and quarterly management information releases? Please give details.
- Are there any ways of presenting the data (such as graphs or infographics) which you would like in the annual release? Please give details
- Are there any breakdowns of the data currently covered by the Right to Buy and Social Housing sales publications which you would like to be included? Please give details
- Do you have any further comments?
About this consultation
This consultation document and consultation process have been planned to adhere to the Consultation Principles issued by the Cabinet Office.
Representative groups are asked to give a summary of the people and organisations they represent, and where relevant who else they have consulted in reaching their conclusions when they respond.
Information provided in response to this consultation may be published or disclosed in accordance with the access to information regimes (these are primarily the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 and UK data protection legislation. In certain circumstances this may therefore include personal data when required by law.
If you want the information that you provide to be treated as confidential, please be aware that, as a public authority, the Department is bound by the information access regimes and may therefore be obliged to disclose all or some of the information you provide. In view of this it would be helpful if you could explain to us why you regard the information you have provided as confidential. If we receive a request for disclosure of the information we will take full account of your explanation, but we cannot give an assurance that confidentiality can be maintained in all circumstances. An automatic confidentiality disclaimer generated by your IT system will not, of itself, be regarded as binding on the Department.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will at all times process your personal data in accordance with UK data protection legislation and in the majority of circumstances this will mean that your personal data will not be disclosed to third parties. A full privacy notice is included below.
Individual responses will not be acknowledged unless specifically requested.
Your opinions are valuable to us. Thank you for taking the time to read this document and respond.
Are you satisfied that this consultation has followed the Consultation Principles? If not or you have any other observations about how we can improve the process please contact us via the complaints procedure.
Personal data
The following is to explain your rights and give you the information you are be entitled to under UK data protection legislation.
Note that this section only refers to personal data (your name, contact details and any other information that relates to you or another identified or identifiable individual personally) not the content otherwise of your response to the consultation.
1. The identity of the data controller and contact details of our Data Protection Officer
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is the data controller. The Data Protection Officer can be contacted at dataprotection@communities.gov.uk or by writing to the following address: Data Protection Officer, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Fry Building, 2 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DF.
2. Why we are collecting your personal data
Your personal data is being collected as an essential part of the consultation process, so that we can contact you regarding your response and for statistical purposes. We may also use it to contact you about related matters.
3. Our legal basis for processing your personal data
The collection of your personal data is lawful under article 6(1)(e) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation as it is necessary for the performance by MHCLG of a task in the public interest/in the exercise of official authority vested in the data controller. Section 8(d) of the Data Protection Act 2018 states that this will include processing of personal data that is necessary for the exercise of a function of the Crown, a Minister of the Crown or a government department i.e. in this case a consultation.
3. With whom we will be sharing your personal data
MHCLG may appoint a ‘data processor’, acting on behalf of the department and under our instruction, to help analyse the responses to this consultation. Where we do we will ensure that the processing of your personal data remains in strict accordance with the requirements of the data protection legislation.
4. For how long we will keep your personal data, or criteria used to determine the retention period.
Your personal data will be held for two years from the closure of the consultation
5. Your rights, e.g. access, rectification, restriction, objection
The data we are collecting is your personal data, and you have considerable say over what happens to it. You have the right:
a. to see what data we have about you
b. to ask us to stop using your data, but keep it on record
c. to ask to have your data corrected if it is incorrect or incomplete
d. to object to our use of your personal data in certain circumstances
e. to lodge a complaint with the independent Information Commissioner (ICO) if you think we are not handling your data fairly or in accordance with the law. You can contact the ICO at https://ico.org.uk/, or telephone 0303 123 1113.
Please contact us at the following address if you wish to exercise the rights listed above, except the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO: dataprotection@communities.gov.uk or Knowledge and Information Access Team, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Fry Building, 2 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DF.