The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has issued a C3 grading to two landlords for failing to meet consumer standards, including overdue fire safety remedial actions
Both Newcastle City Council and Nottingham City Council received C3 gradings from the social housing regulator, indicating “serious failings” in how the landlords were meeting the outcomes of the consumer standards, with “significant improvement” needed.
In a press release published on 15 January 2025, the regulator reported that Newcastle City Council made a self-referral in January, May, and September of last year, while a planned inspection was carried out at Nottingham City Council.
Regarding Newcastle City Council, inspectors found more than 1,800 overdue repairs cases as of November 2024. Additionally, there were more than 850 overdue fire safety remedial actions. Around half of the communal areas and a quarter of the landlord’s homes did not have a current satisfactory electrical condition report, and there was a lack of information about the council’s homes, with the last stock condition completed over a decade ago. There was also insufficient information to understand the diverse needs of its tenants.
Nottingham City Council also showed a lack of accurate, up-to-date data regarding its stock quality and decency, with nearly 40% of its homes not surveyed for more than ten years. Along with 1,000 live disrepair cases, the regulator stated that there were weaknesses in the landlord’s “approach to capping gas supplies when it could not gain access to complete gas safety checks and monitoring of compliance with smoke and carbon monoxide detection requirements”.
Chief of Regulatory Engagement at RSH, Kate Dodsworth said: “Having an effective repairs service and keeping accurate data are both vital for keeping tenants safe in their homes, especially when it comes to serious issues such as fire safety as well as damp and mould.
“We are continuing our responsive investigations, including for small social landlords. It is vital that all housing associations and other private registered providers meet the outcomes of our Governance and Financial Viability Standard which remains as important as ever.”
Commenting on the regulatory judgement, Executive Member for Housing and Planning at Nottingham City Council, Councillor Jay Hayes said:
“We have been aware of the need to significantly improve our housing services since we brought the ALMO back in house, so this judgement does not come as a surprise. We proactively engaged with the Regulator in January 2024 and shared our improvement plans then.
“Resident safety and the delivery of our housing services in line with tenant aspirations is a key priority, and we’re committed to making sure that the money we’re investing in addressing some of the failings in the report is spent where it will have the most impact.
“…We do not take the RSH’s findings lightly. Clearly, there is much work to do, and we will not shy away from doing it."
As reported by Inside Housing, director of housing and communities at Newcastle City Council, Vicky McDermott said of the C3 grading: “This was the first time that the Regulator of Social Housing has issued us with a consumer grade and, whilst extremely disappointing, the C3 grading that we have received was expected.
“It’s important to note that the regulator carried out [its] assessment in October, and we have already seen a significant improvement in several areas highlighted in [its] report.”
She added: “We’ve already reduced the number of overdue repairs since the assessment by over 10% and have now carried out electrical safety tests in over 90% of all communal blocks, with all high-rise block testing completed.
“We will soon be launching a new repairs policy which will provide residents with a clear service outline and timeframe to expect their repairs to be completed.”