Housing Consumer Standards
Regulator announcement
An announcement has been published by the Regulator of Social Housing on its website following our decision to make a self-referral in April 2024.
We have been given a C3 grading by the Regulator which means there are serious failings and significant improvement is required. The Regulator also published gradings for three other local authority social housing providers on the same day.
South Derbyshire District Council commissioned a self-assessment against the Housing Consumer Standards and that highlighted areas where we were falling short and consequently, we made a self-referral to the Regulator of Social Housing in April 2024.
Subsequently, we wrote to tenants informing them we were not meeting the Consumer Standards and giving them our commitment to make changes, not just to meet the Standards, but to become an excellent landlord.
We also invited tenants to come forward to help us on that journey, and as a result we have increased the size of our re-energized Tenants’ Voice Group. They are now actively engaged in helping us on our improvement journey.
As well as engaging additional resource and expertise, we have been working proactively and transparently with The Regulator and Elected Members and have started implementing the improvements needed.
There is still much to do, and we are concentrating our initial efforts on completing all the safety checks and repairs to ensure our tenants continue to live in safe homes.
We shall continue to work closely with The Regulator and our Tenants’ Voice Group over the coming months to complete the work needed to become the landlord we aspire to be. We will continue to update tenants regularly and share our progress.
Background
The Social Housing White Paper, ‘The Charter for Social Housing Residents’ was published in November 2020, and after consultation was followed by the Social Housing (Regulations) Act 2023, being agreed. The new framework (the Act) established for social housing includes:
- New building safety regime,
- Strengthened role for the Regulator on safety,
- Increased powers for the Housing Ombudsman,
- New standards on professionalism, and,
- The introduction of tenant satisfaction measures requiring the collection and provision of information to support the effective scrutiny by tenants of their landlord’s performance in relation to managing their homes and neighbourhoods.
A fundamental part of the new regulatory framework is a revised set of Consumer Standards setting out the requirements that registered providers such as the Housing Service must meet. The four areas of the standard cover the following:
- The Safety and Quality Homes Standard,
- The Transparency, Influence, and Accountability Standard,
- The Neighbourhood and Community Standard,
- The Tenancy Standard.
The Council carried out a self-assessment that demonstrates the Housing Service was not able to meet all the requirements of the new Consumer Standards by their effective date of 1 April 2024.
This predominantly arises from not having up to date stock condition surveys, making it difficult to determine the current condition and safety of the stock on a property-by-property basis. In addition, tenant engagement activities have decreased, and tenants are not as involved in the Council’s landlord responsibilities, and associated management of its council housing as in the past.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is self-referral?
Everyone living in a South Derbyshire District Council property deserves to have a good, safe, and secure home, and our teams are committed to making this a reality.
The Council carried out a self-assessment which made it clear that we cannot meet all the requirements of the new Consumer Standards. As a result of that, we have referred ourselves to the national watchdog, the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH).
The Regulator will now investigate to see whether the Council is meeting the consumer standards and if there is evidence of a serious detriment or risk of serious detriment to tenants. We're keen to work with the Regulator to fix any issues and we welcome the support and extra scrutiny this will bring.
In the meantime, we're continuing to carry out repairs and improvement work on our properties across the District, prioritising safety issues. If you have a repair please contact the Council via the portal, Council’s website, or phone.
If your preference is via phone, please call our contact centre on 01283 595795. Our telephone lines are open Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays between 8.45am and 5pm, Wednesdays between 9.30am and 5pm and Fridays between 8.45am and 4.30pm.
If you need to report an out-of-hours emergency, please call 01332 912642.
Much of our housing was built more than 50 years ago and needs a lot of investment to bring it up to standard. That includes work to make our homes safer and more habitable, as well as more cosmetic improvements. The Council will be undertaking a stock condition survey to all our properties within the next 12 months. We will be producing a new Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Business plan and Asset Management plan.
The Council acknowledges that many residents feel that their concerns have not been listened to or their requests for assistance not adequately dealt with, and for this we are very sorry. The referral will help us to do everything we can to improve this position.
As part of our improvement plans, we aim to give you clearer information and will create easier ways for you to contact us when you need help. We are determined to make every South Derbyshire District Council property a great place to live, and we want to involve residents in that process.
Q. Does this mean my home is not safe?
Not at all. We've referred ourselves to the Regulator because we don't have data on the standard of all our homes, so we cannot provide evidence. The safety of all our tenants and leaseholders is paramount.
Q. Is every South Derbyshire District Council property affected or just some of them?
All our properties are affected by our decision to self-refer, as we are talking to the Regulator about the whole service, not individual properties. We know that there are issues with the condition of some of our homes, although many are in a very good condition. The emphasis though is that we do not have the data to be able to demonstrate to the Regulator that all our homes are of a decent standard.
Q. You mention a review - can I have a copy of that?
A Housing Services Working Group has been set up to agree and oversee the delivery of the Performance Improvement Plan. We will be publishing our Performance Improvement Plan once it is finalised. It will set out where we need to do more, what we will do, and when we will do it.
Q. What can the Regulator do, and how will it help?
The Regulator will review what we have done and what we are doing and will tell us where and how we can improve the service we provide. It can also require us to take specific action if it decides it is necessary. The additional scrutiny of our work will help us to improve the service for our tenants and leaseholders by providing an outside view of what needs to be done most urgently. We welcome this open and transparent assessment of our service.
Q. Why now? There have been problems for a long time.
Much of the Council’s housing was built more than 50 years ago and needs a lot of investment to bring it up to standard. That includes work to make our homes safer and more habitable, as well as more cosmetic improvements. National financial restrictions on rents set by a series of governments over many years have been exceptionally challenging and have limited the amount of money we have had available to spend.
Our teams are committed to doing the best job possible and have been working hard in difficult circumstances. We also know we have not delivered good standards across all our service areas. We want to work with tenants and leaseholders to put this right. A full Housing Service review was started in December 2023 and is due to be completed by August 2024.
Q. Will I get a rent reduction if my home is not up to scratch?
Everyone living in a South Derbyshire District Council property deserves to have a good, safe, and secure home. We cannot reduce the amount we charge in rent if we are going to make that a reality.
Q. Do I need to keep paying rent and service charges in this situation?
Yes. If you don't pay your rent, you risk losing your home under your tenancy agreement. Please continue to pay your rent and service charges as you currently do.
Q. Will this speed up how quickly my repair gets done?
The Council is dealing with repairs based on priorities around health and safety issues, how important they are, impact they could have on tenants, and how vulnerable the tenants are. Some requests for repairs are delayed for a significant amount of time because other repair work is more vital. This is because safety and compliance work must take priority.
We work closely with our specialist contractors to try to ensure repairs are dealt with quickly and efficiently, while causing the minimum disruption to tenants. The Council is currently introducing a new software system which will help improve our performance on repairs.
Q. Will someone want to inspect my home? When?
The Council is appointing a contractor with the aim of inspecting every property over the next 12 months. We appreciate your co-operation with access to your property to make this possible. You will receive further communication about this shortly.
Q. What is your overall plan for completing all repairs - how long could I be waiting?
We do not currently have a timetable set for completing repairs because we prioritise them based on how important they are, the impact they could have on tenants, and how vulnerable the tenants are. If yours is an urgent repair, we will get to it as soon as we can. Timescales are set out in the Council’s Repairs Policy.
Q. How can I give input to the Regulator myself?
The Regulator will look to see whether there is evidence of systemic or organisational failure by the Council, (i.e., a failure which is indicative of a wider breakdown in the provider's overall organisation and systems). The Regulator has no role in resolving individual disputes between landlords and tenants.
Q. What is your prioritisation scheme in detail?
Our priority is to make our tenants' homes safer and to improve communication. We carry out repairs based on priorities, especially around health and safety issues, how important they are, the impact they could have on tenants, and how vulnerable the tenants are. Some requests for repairs are delayed for a significant amount of time because other repair work is more vital. This is because safety and compliance work must take priority over cosmetic work. We work closely with our specialist contractors to try to ensure repairs are dealt with quickly and efficiently, while causing the minimum disruption to tenants. We will continue to complete repairs based on health and safety priorities.
The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard requires all registered providers of social housing to collect and report annually on their performance using a core set of defined measures. These measures are called the Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM). The TSMs provide tenants with greater transparency about their landlord’s performance. The Council has recently carried out a TSM survey, the results of which will be published once all the data has been collated. We expect this to be in July 2024 and this information will be shared with the Regulator.
Q. Do I need to re-report issues I've previously reported?
No. We are continuing to prioritise our repair work, but there is no need for you to contact us unless we have specifically asked you to, such as to confirm an appointment.
Q. Are you prioritising damp and mould issues?
The Council is prioritising work based on health and safety, the impact it could have on tenants, and how vulnerable the tenants are. If yours is an urgent repair, we will get to it as soon as we can. Not all cases of damp and mould are significant, so we are not prioritising all such cases ahead of other work.
The Council has produced a damp and mould leaflet which will be sent out to all tenants. We have recruited a Damp and Mould Project Officer and are working to a new set of procedures. More information can be found on the Council’s website.
If you are concerned about mould in your home please contact the Council via the portal, Council’s website, or phone.
If your preference is via phone, please call our contact centre on 01283 595795. Our telephone lines are open Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays.
Q. If my home is unsafe will I need to move out?
On occasions we must carry out major works to properties. These works can be quite disruptive for residents and therefore sometimes it is better for you to move out of your home. If this occurs, we will discuss the best option with you at the time. We do not move tenants out of their property unless it is necessary as we understand how disruptive and unsettling this can be.
Q. How do I complain about a repair that has been outstanding for some time?
If you are unhappy and wish to make a complaint, this can be done via the Council’s website using the online form.
Visit the Comments, compliments, and complaints section.
Q. My home is no longer suitable for me, what should I do?
If you feel your home is no longer suitable for you please visit the Council’s website for further information.
If you are having difficulty doing this, please contact the Council on 01283 595795 or by email to Housing.Jigsaw@southderbyshire.gov.uk.
Q. Can I have a copy of any certificates to ensure my property is safe?
The Council will provide you with copies of certificates on request. Please contact a member of the Council’s asset team via email Housing.Improvements@southderbyshire.gov.uk or via phone on 01283 595795.
Q. What standard is considered acceptable?
Your home must meet the Government’s Decent Homes Standard. We will be carrying out stock condition and housing health and safety rating system surveys to all of our properties to ensure we meet the standard.
Further information on decent homes can be found on the government website.
Q. Can I claim any compensation?
If you feel you have suffered injury, loss, or damage to property because of our negligence, you may be able to claim compensation.
A third-party claim form will have to be completed (including photographs if applicable). This can be found on the Council’s website.
Q. Will I need to pay towards any of the repairs or issues found in my home?
We are responsible for the maintenance of some parts of our homes and our tenants and leaseholders are responsible for the maintenance of other parts. Details can be found on the Council’s website.
If your questions have not been answered or you want any further information, please email us on the new consumer standards email address: consumerstandards@southderbyshire.gov.uk.