RSH Board minutes - 23 May 2023 (accessible version)
Updated 8 February 2024
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Public minutes of the Board meeting
on Tuesday 23 May 2023 - hybrid FG47 2 Marsham Street and MS Teams
6.Remote and virtual participation
6.1 Any member may validly participate in a meeting virtually through the medium of conference telephone, video conferencing or similar form of communication equipment, provided that all persons participating in the meeting are able to hear and speak to each other throughout such meeting, or relevant part thereof. A member so participating shall be deemed to be present in person at the meeting and shall accordingly be counted in a quorum and entitled to vote.
6.2 A meeting shall be deemed to take place where the largest group of those members participating is assembled or, if there is no group which is larger than any other group, where the chair of the meeting is.
Present
- Bernadette Conroy - Chair
- Liz Butler
- Jo Boaden
- Deborah Gregory
- Richard Hughes
- Geoff Smyth
- Kalpesh Brahmbhatt
- Paul Smee
- Sukhvinder Kaur-Stubbs - joined at 11.30am
- Fiona MacGregor - Chief Executive and Board Member
- Jonathan Walters - Deputy Chief Executive
In attendance
- Harold Brown - Senior Assistant Director, Investigation and Enforcement
- Richard Peden - Director, Finance and Corporate Services
- Kate Dodsworth - Director, Consumer Regulation
- Will Perry - Director, Strategy
- Maxine Loftus – Director, Regulatory Operations
- Kirsty Morris - Board apprentice
- Anna Moore - Senior Solicitor
- Jim Bennett - Assistant Director, Policy and Communications (items 6 and 11)
- Anna Furlong - Head of Policy and Strategy (for agenda item 11)
Observing
Peter Allanson - Good Governance Institute
Minutes
Christine Kitchen - Board secretary
1. Welcome and apologies
01/05/23 Apologies ERT. SK-S joined at 11.30am.
2. Declarations of interest
02/05/23 There were no new declarations of interest. BC highlighted her standard declaration in respect of her position on the board of the FCA.
3. Minutes of meeting 25 April
03/05/23 The confidential and public minutes from 25 April 2023 were considered and subject to minor amendments, these were agreed.
4. Matters arising
04/05/23 Members considered the matters arising from previous meeting and actions were agreed. In particular, Systemic failures was added into forward planner, Fees to the ARAC planner, and D&M to the June meeting.
5. Board forward planner
05/05/23 Members considered the forward planner. JW/FM/BC to pull themes from the board awayday to include for future workshops. CK to add GGI feedback session to the forward planner.
6. Chair’s update
06/05/23 All board member appraisals are now completed and themes for workshops/teach-in to be collated. The Chair has also had her appraisal with the department.
07/05/23 The Chair advised that she has a number of key RSH meetings coming up in June – she will be visiting Manchester with KD to attend the NHC meeting and will be meeting the Scottish regulator with WP. On-line meetings are being arranged with Chairs of RPs and members were welcome to join these meetings –dates will be shared with members when confirmed.
7. Deputy Chief Executive’s update
09/05/23 JB joined the meeting and JW provided further updates on some of the slides.
10/05/23 Stakeholder survey – the results are just in, and the early analysis shows that the results show we are broadly where we were last year. The results will be shared with members when finalised.
11/05/23 Select committee – the focus will be on sector Finance and is expected to start in June. We have made our submission and are very likely to be called to give evidence.
12/05/23 Meeting with the housing minister: FM advised that she had attended a round table with Rachel MacLean MP, Minister of State for Housing and Planning, NHF and HA CEOs from a variety of providers. The meeting was to discuss the financial pressures on the sector as they try to deliver new supply and investment in the existing stock.
13/05/23 The policy landscape is complex and is overlaid by what is happening in other areas. We continue to work with the department to manage all these areas, but it is taking up a considerable amount of our time.
14/05/23 Social Housing Regulation Bill - We await a date for the next stages of the parliamentary process. We await Royal Assent, so that we can begin our consultation process on the new Consumer standards.
15/05/23 Decent Homes Standard – the Government has relaunched its discussions with stakeholders. The basic premise for the standard remains.
16/05/23 Grenfell inquiry – we await the publication of the report.
17/05/23 Stakeholder feedback
Tenants – members were advised that we get some questions about who is responsible for leaseholders and our role in relation to management bodies such as TMOs. Engagement remains generally positive. We are waiting for the Consumer Standards consultation to come out and then we can start further, intense engagement.
18/05/23 Landlords & rating agencies – there are concerns about the financial pressures on the sector.
19/05/23 Performance against BP – the organisational structure refresh has been announced. Responses and reactions from staff have been low, it was what staff expected, but interest may increase when the next levels of the proposed structure are announced.
20/05/23 Operations update – 4 RJs published
21/05/23 Investigation & Enforcement – Members noted the updates.
22/05/23 Consumer Regulation – there has been an increase in LA cases.
23/05/23 Stakeholder & media – noted.
8. Consumer Standards – Awaab’s law direction
24/05/23 JB and AF joined the meeting to present the paper. Members were advised that the additions are to reflect the provisions in the law which are mainly regulations for fixed timescales to remedy issues and requirements for landlords to provide information to tenants. The commitment in the Bill is for the SoS to direct us within 6 months from Royal Assent. SoS wants these requirements to come into force from April 2024. There is still a risk on meeting the legislative timescale, but intention is still to meeting 2024 timescale.
26/05/23 Management was also asked what remedy will there be for tenants for non-compliance with Awaab’s Law and WP advised that in relation to the provision of information, it will be dealt with via regulations, whilst the remedy of hazards will be given legal footing and enforced through the courts.
SK-S joined the meeting.
28/05/23 The Executive confirmed their support to the recommendations in the paper and the Board also gave their approval and thanked AF and JB for their hard work on this.
9. Any Other Business
29/05/23 There were no other matters of business.
10. Review of meeting
30/05/23 The review of the meeting followed the workshop sessions and members all agreed that the papers were of a high standard and the directions for the discussions on papers by the Chair, had been extremely helpful.
Date of next meeting: 27 June 2023 - Manchester