Castle Point Borough Council, North Yorkshire Council and Warwickshire Council have received ‘C3’ gradings
The Regulator of Social Housing has identified three more local authorities that are failing to meet the consumer standards.
Castle Point Borough Council, North Yorkshire Council and Warwickshire Council have all received ‘C3’ gradings, meaning there are serious failings they need to address.
Since the new consumer regulatory regime came into effect in July, a total of 10 local authorities and one housing association have received ‘C3’ ratings.
Castle Borough Council failed to collect Tenant Satisfaction Measures, which all landlords are now required to do annually.
The regulator has said that, as a result, tenants are able to scrutinise its performance in delivering landlord services.
North Yorkshire Council, which took over housing services from three district councils last year, referred itself to the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) in May, acknowledging that “work needs to be done to meet all elements of the [Social Housing (Regulation)] Act”.
The RSH found that North Yorkshire Council does not have an accurate or up-to-date understanding of the condition of tenants’ homes.
Around half of the nearly 8,500 homes it owns do not have an up-to-date electrical condition report.
In addition, the council holds fire safety information across different systems, making it difficult to identify the number of overdue fire risk assessments and outstanding actions.
There was also a lack of information on water hygiene and asbestos, however, the council is currently reviewing all risk assessments and completing recommended actions.
North Yorkshire Council has also developed a improvement plan for its housing services.
North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director for community development, Nic Harne, said: “Our improvement plan gives us the chance to provide the best services and quality of housing for our residents, and a unified housing service for our tenants.”
Harne added: “We have fully restructured the service and have improvement plans in place. The safety and quality of our homes is our priority, and we encourage any tenants with concerns about their homes to contact us directly.”
Warwick District Council also self-referred to the regulator as it has 1,600 overdue fire safety actions. It also could not evidence that it was meeting legal requirements for carbon monoxide safety.
The council also reported it had not carried out a full stock condition survey since 2016. Although the council has recently resumed stock condition surveys, they have identified inaccuracies in the new survey data.
The RSH’s investigation also found that the council was not providing an efficient repairs service, and was also not recording or responding to complaints effectively.
Councillor Helen Adkins, portfolio holder for housing and assets, said: “We are working at pace to improve systems and processes for the delivery and oversight of health and safety requirements and repairs”.
Adkins added that the council has commissioned a full housing condition survey and will improve its complaints handling resources and processes.
| Social landlords found non-compliant with new consumer standards | Type | Date of judgement |
|---|---|---|
| Castle Point Borough Council | Local authority | 13-Sep-24 |
| North Yorkshire Council | Local authority | 13-Sep-24 |
| Warwickshire Council | Local authority | 13-Sep-24 |
| Brighton & Hove City Council | Local authority | 09-Aug-24 |
| Hackney Council | Local authority | 09-Aug-24 |
| South Derbyshire District Council | Local authority | 09-Aug-24 |
| Ashford Borough Council | Local authority | 09-Aug-24 |
| Bristol City Council | Local authority | 09-Jul-24 |
| Guildford Borough Council | Local authority | 09-Jul-24 |
| Octavia Housing | Housing association | 09-Jul-24 |
| Sheffield City Council | Local authority | 09-Jul-24 |
“Our priority is to ensure that risks to tenants are adequately managed and mitigated,” she emphasised.
She said “I am confident that officers will continue to be proactive in driving through the necessary measures and processes to deliver the change required and reassure our customers that safety and property compliance is a core strategic priority for the council at the heart of our housing service”.
Kate Dodsworth, chief of regulatory engagement at the RSH, said: “It is the responsibility of the landlord to take a proactive approach to providing safe and decent homes for tenants.”
Dodsworth added: “health and safety must be a top priority and keeping up-to-date, accurate data is a key part of this”.
She said that the RSH is working constructively with the three local authorities “as they put things right for their tenants”.
>> See also: Four more local authorities breach new consumer standards
>> See also: Four social landlords breach new consumer standards
Dodsworth reminded landlords to refer themselves to the regulator if they’re not meeting the outcomes of the regulatory standards, rather than waiting for an inspection.
She said, “this allows issues to be identified – and resolved – promptly. They must also ensure they collect TSMs, which gives tenants the information they need to scrutinise their landlord.”
Castle Point Borough Council has been approached for comment.
No comments yet