In a significant move to enhance tenant protection and improve services, the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) set out its new regulatory approach on 29th February 2024. Insight into the new regime was first introduced by the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, marking a proactive shift towards a more robust consumer regulation regime. The new regime and revised standards will come into force from 1st April 2024.
“Social landlords must keep tenants safe in their homes, listen to what they say and put things right when needed. We are introducing new standards to drive improvements in social housing, and we will actively inspect landlords to check they are meeting them.” - Fiona MacGregor, Chief Executive of RSH
The director of regulatory engagement at the RSH joined our January webinar, where she provided insights into the upcoming changes and expert advice on preparing for April. Watch the webinar on-demand now to discover top tips for compliance.
To help you understand the headline updates, we’ve created a comprehensive summary of the key guidance published by the RSH in February so you can best prepare for the regulations coming into force in April.
The main document released is titled ‘Reshaping consumer regulation: our new approach’ and outlines the key regulation changes, including:
The document also outlines the next steps for the new approach to regulation. Here’s the key date timeline to ensure you’re up to date throughout the process:
Here are the final revised consumer standards that all landlords will be regulated against from April 2024:
Under the new standards, landlords must:
To help landlords deliver the outcomes, the RSH has also published a code of practice to amplify the requirements of the standards and provide an example of what compliance may look like.
It’s important to note that the ‘serious detriment’ test has been removed under the new standards. This means the RSH can investigate and take action where there is evidence of potential landlord failures in the consumer standards in the same way they currently do for our other standards.
To discover expert insight directly from the RSH on the new standards and lessons learnt from pilot inspections, read our dedicated blog, ‘How Can the Sector Best Prepare for the Consumer Regulation Changes?’.
As part of the information pack, the RSH published a document on ‘Regulating the standards’, outlining specific information on their approach to landlord inspections, responsive engagement with landlords, and regulatory judgements and gradings.
To hold landlords to account and ensure they’re compliant with the new standards, the RSH will:
Programmed inspections for large landlords will be carried out at least every four years. However, the frequency is linked to the assessment of risk, meaning buildings with higher risk levels may undergo more frequent inspections.