In our recent webinar, Consumer Regulation: Insights on achieving a C1 grading, our Principal Consultant, Lisa Driscoll, shared her first-hand knowledge from the consumer regulation pilots. She was joined by Jenny Spoor, Director of Operations at Havebury Housing Partnership (Havebury), who also provided invaluable insight on their recent regulatory inspection, where they achieved a C1 grading. Don’t worry if you missed it, discover Lisa and Jenny's insights on-demand here.

To support your preparations for upcoming regulatory inspections, this blog summarises the inspection process, key findings from the Regulator of Social Housing's (RSH) judgements, and answers your frequently asked questions.  

The new consumer regulation regime 

In April 2024, the RSH introduced a new consumer regulation regime, including four updated consumer standards and a programme of regulatory inspections. To recap, these standards are:

• Neighbourhood and Community Standard.
• Safety and Quality Standard.
• Tenancy Standard.
• Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard (including the Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs)).

For a detailed breakdown of these standards and how they apply to your organisation, check out our blog, ‘Consumer Regulation: Everything you need to know in 5 minutes’.

Programmed inspections

Alongside the new standards, the RSH is now conducting proactive inspections of all housing providers to assess their compliance with the standards at least every four years. Judgements and gradings, published from July 2024 onwards, show most organisations are currently falling within the C2 and C3 categories.

A noticeable trend emerging from the RSH’s findings is the importance of having a comprehensive understanding of your housing stock. Organisations receiving non-compliant gradings often share a common issue: outdated stock condition data.

“Many non-compliant landlords – those which received C3 or C4 grades – did not have up-to-date stock condition surveys.”

Source: Inside Housing 

If your stock condition data is out of date, it’s important to undertake a Stock Condition Survey with a competent surveyor, get in touch with one of our experts to book your survey and ensure compliance before your inspection.

Whilst there is no way of knowing when each inspection will be, the RSH's inspection plan outlines how inspections are scheduled, considering factors like the organisation's size, financial risk, activity complexity, and regulated data such as TSMs. To discover more, this plan can be found here.

Inspection process

As the inspections are new, many organisations are still unfamiliar with what the process will look like and how to best prepare. Here are some insights from Havebury on what their inspection process looked like:

• Two weeks post-notification: Submission of requested documents.
• On-site visit: A two-day office-based meeting with the RSH.
• May 2024: RSH observed a resident experience committee meeting, which was a mix of residents, independents, and board members.
• June 2024: RSH observed a board meeting, along with discussions involving residents, board members, and committee chairs.
• Executive interviews: Over six hours across two days, covering consumer and economic standards, including compliance, risk management, stock condition, and resident engagement.
• Review of assurance and gaps: Follow-up questions around particular areas and a feedback meeting.
• July 2024: Grading notification (results embargoed until September 2024).

Preparing for inspections

Here’s what Havebury did in advance of the inspection:

1. Prioritise Residents: Focus on delivering better services and understanding residents' needs.
2. Back to Basics: Remove inefficiencies, like patchless working for the housing officers. Working within a dedicated area meant officers could know and understand their area, and develop key relationships with residents,
3. Specialised Teams: Increased Supported teams to collaborate with residents on complex cases, such as hoarding.
4. Tailored Repairs: Adjust repair policies to better suit residents’ needs.
5. Data-Driven Services: Ensure robust, up-to-date stock condition data and conduct resident surveys to tailor services.
6. Strengthen Compliance: Focus on health and safety, performance data, and assurance.

“While preparing for the inspection is important, the primary focus must always be on delivering great services. The RSH said several times that they are still learning, too, so I think the inspection process will be different and more refined by next year. Therefore, prioritising your service delivery is key; this will be your inspection preparation.”

Jenny Spoor, Havebury

Key findings from the RSH judgements

Lessons learnt from early regulatory judgements include:

• Evidencing outcomes and compliance matters​.
• Strong governance structures are essential, including third-party arrangements.
• There is a necessity for clarity of reporting, oversight, and accountability​.
• Maintaining good quality data about both stock and residents is vital​.
• It’s important to have good use of performance data.
• Resident voice and engagement are at the heart of compliance.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

In the webinar, attendees posed questions for our experts and Jenny to share their expertise. Here’s what they said:

Q: How do you get assurance that operational teams are meeting expectations?

A: Engage with different parts of your team to observe their work on the ground. Whilst the RSH isn’t prescriptive about which teams must be involved in meetings, it’s recommended to include at least your executive team. Additionally, bring in subject matter experts or compliance specialists to address technical queries effectively. But remember, the focus on these should be delivering great services to residents – this is your preparation for the inspection.

Q: Will assessments vary between organisations based on the desktop review findings?

A: To some extent, yes. The desktop review will shape the focus of the assessment and the areas the RSH explores further. However, certain elements are consistently prioritised across all inspections, such as health and safety, repairs and maintenance, and stock condition (Safety and Quality Standard). Likewise, resident engagement and resident voice are always central to the Transparency, Influence, and Accountability Standard. Common practices will always include observing board meetings, committee discussions, and resident engagement opportunities.

Q: Did you use website links with key information during evidence gathering?

A: The RSH typically reviews the organisation’s websites before notifying about an inspection. This process helps them assess whether information is up to date, accessible to residents, and sufficient for context-building.

Q: Will the RSH review things like public minutes if they’re available?

A: Yes. The RSH can ask for copies of board reports, minutes, and other relevant documents, many of which are publicly available on local authority websites. They also gather data from sources such as the local authority data return, digital data return, and Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs), and even review media coverage to form a complete understanding before the inspection.

Q: Are there any pitfalls organisations should avoid during preparation?

A: Inspections are just one moment in time, so your regular processes and practices are what truly matter. Evidence collection should be embedded in your operations to avoid last-minute preparation that isn’t reflective of your normal practices. Make it a habit to review the standards, understand expectations, and assess your approach against the code of practice to ensure you can provide the necessary evidence. But again, it’s crucial to remember the focus should be delivering great services to residents as your preparation for the inspection.

Q: What kind of technical questions might arise during an inspection?

A: Technical queries can be highly specific. For example, Havebury was asked about its asbestos compliance. It’s essential to be prepared for similar detailed questions about compliance practices, even in areas you haven’t flagged as concerns.

Q: How many RSH representatives typically attend site inspections?

A: Typically, three or four representatives visit. The representatives will be from across the RSH and will focus on different areas of the scope.

Q: How important is team alignment on goals and KPIs?

A: Alignment across all departments is vital, with the resident always at the centre. Clear and efficient processes help resolve issues promptly, preventing gaps where responsibilities might fall between teams. Accepting and addressing mistakes collaboratively, rather than placing blame, ensures issues are resolved effectively.

If you’re struggling to ensure adherence to relevant legislation, approved codes of practice, and best industry practices, a Compliance Health Check will assess your approach and identify necessary improvements. Get in touch with our team of experts to find out how we can support your consumer regulation compliance.