RSH publishes regulatory judgements for 11 social landlords
The Regulator of Social Housing has today published regulatory judgements for 11 social landlords.
ForHousing has been upgraded from G3 to G2 following a period of intensive engagement. The landlord has delivered an agreed improvement plan, including significant restructuring that involved removing an unregistered parent and disposal of its interest in another unregistered company that was part of the same parent group.
It has strengthened its control framework and improved its oversight of strategic risks. The board has been able to evidence that it has full, independent control over decisions that impact its outcomes.
ForHousing needs to continue to make improvements in its governance and risk management as it reviews the effectiveness of the changes it has made.
Two landlords, West Lancashire Borough Council and City of Westminster Council, received C1 gradings. This means that overall they are delivering the outcomes of the consumer standards and they have demonstrated that they identify when issues occur and put plans in place to remedy and minimise recurrence.
The London Borough of Wandsworth, Central Bedfordshire Council, and Anchor Hanover Group failed to meet the outcomes of RSH’s consumer standards and received C3 gradings.
During a planned inspection of the London Borough of Wandsworth, RSH found:
- Around 40% of homes and almost 80% of communal areas had not had an electrical safety test.
- Almost 1,800 overdue fire safety remedial actions, all of which were more than 12 months overdue.
- Only 6.5% of its 17,000 total homes had been surveyed in the last ten years
- Weaknesses in how tenants’ views are taken into account in decision making.
During an inspection of Central Bedfordshire Council, RSH found:
- More than 1,800 overdue repairs orders.
- More than 300 outstanding fire safety actions arising from fire risk assessments had not been tracked by age or prioritised by urgency.
- No tracking, monitoring, or reporting of the number and age of damp and mould cases.
- A limited range of opportunities for tenants to scrutinise their landlord’s performance and influence how its housing services are delivered
Following responsive engagement with Anchor Hanover Group, RSH found:
- Over a third of its homes did not have a current satisfactory electrical safety inspection report
- A significant backlog of electrical remedial actions
- Incomplete and unreliable information available on the presence of damp and mould
- Weaknesses across landlord health and safety, including fire safety and water hygiene
RSH has also placed Anchor Hanover Group on its gradings under review list. RSH is currently investigating matters which may impact on whether the landlord continues to meet the governance elements of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard.
RSH is engaging intensively with all three social landlords as they work to address the issues identified in each of the cases.
Mansfield District Council and Waverley Borough Council received C2 gradings.
RSH also published regulatory judgements for three further landlords following stability checks.
Peabody Trust and One Manchester retained their current G1/V2 gradings, while Bolton at Home retained its G2/V2 gradings.
Kate Dodsworth, Chief of Regulatory Engagement at RSH, said:
“As we approach the end of the first year of our programmed inspections, we are continuing to see a broad spectrum of gradings - though it is still too early to draw concrete trends.
“While our engagement is the most intensive with landlords that fail to meet the outcomes of our standards, even landlords that receive a C1 grading have room for improvement.
“Along with our consumer regulation, our scrutiny of governance and financial viability remains as important as ever. Landlords must have rigorous oversight of strategic risk and continue to stress test their financial plans. Without strong governance, landlords will not be able to deliver more and better social homes for tenants.
“We can confirm that we have placed Anchor Hanover Group on the gradings under review list. The outcome of the investigation will be confirmed in a regulatory judgement, once completed.”
All the judgements published today can be found on the Regulatory Judgements and Enforcement Notices page.
Notes to Editors
-
On 1 April 2024 RSH introduced new consumer standards for social housing landlords, designed to drive long-term improvements in the sector. It also began a programme of inspections for all large social landlords (those with over 1,000 homes) over a four-year cycle. The changes are a result of the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023 and include stronger powers to hold landlords to account. More information about RSH’s approach is available in its document Reshaping Consumer Regulation.
-
RSH carries out stability checks on all housing associations, and other private registered providers, who own 1,000 homes or more. The stability checks are a yearly exercise. We look at the financial information landlords have submitted to us (including their most recent business plan and annual accounts) and consider if there are any risks which might result in a change to their financial viability or governance gradings. The checks do not include local authorities because our governance and financial viability standard does not apply to them.
-
More information about RSH’s responsive engagement, programmed inspections and consumer gradings is also available on its website.
-
RSH promotes a viable, efficient and well-governed social housing sector able to deliver more and better social homes. It does this by setting standards and carrying out robust regulation focusing on driving improvement in social landlords, including local authorities, and ensuring that housing associations are well-governed, financially viable and offer value for money. It takes appropriate action if the outcomes of the standards are not being delivered.
-
For general enquiries email enquiries@rsh.gov.uk. For media enquiries please see our Media Enquiries page.