Industry News
Regulator publishes fire safety remediation report for English social housing
T
he Regulator of Social Housing has published the findings from its latest quarterly survey on the fire safety of 11
metre plus buildings in the social housing sector. All social landlords are required to submit
quarterly data to RSH and the Ministry ofHousing, Communities and Local Government on the fire safety remediation of relevant buildings for which they are responsible. Of the 17,457 relevant buildings reported, 99%
had had fire risk assessments undertaken and 11% were found to have a life critical fire safety (LCFS) defect relating to the external wall system (EWS). Te vast majority of relevant buildings (88%) had no LCFS defects. 11% of the 1,932 affected buildings are due to
have remedial work completed within the next six months, and 84% are expected to complete in the next five years.
Some landlords with multiple affected buildings
have indicated they are prioritising works on higher risk buildings, which can be more complex and take longer to remediate. Tese landlords have a duty to put interim measures in place to ensure the safety of tenants until works are fully completed. Te regulator will continue to monitor the
performance of landlords in remediating 11 metre plus buildings and the progress they are making against their plans. Social landlords must have robust systems
and processes in place on fire safety and its management, underpinned by accurate and up to date data. Tis is a key aspect of landlords ensuring that tenants are safe in their homes. Will Perry, director of strategy at RSH, said: “Tis
quarterly survey is an important tool in helping us monitor the progress being made by the sector on remediating fire safety defects. Fire safety is
a fundamental responsibility and we expect all landlords to take prompt and effective action so that tenants can feel safe in their homes. “Tis includes putting mitigating measures
in place to protect tenants from any risks in the interim period before works are complete. Boards and councillors have a duty to ensure these plans are delivered. “Meanwhile our ongoing regulation, including
our programme of inspections and responsive engagement, helps us check that landlords are meeting the outcomes of our standards – including those relating to fire safety.” Landlords have previously claimed that delays
in progressing schemes is due to a range of factors including navigating complex legal arrangements with freeholders and leaseholders, difficulties sourcing contractors and supply chain delays.
Essex council’s housing stock found to have serious safety failings
Te Regulator of Social Housing has found that Harlow District Council failed to meet the new consumer standards over a series of afety shortcomings. As a result, the regulator gave the Essex council
a C3 grade for its housing service, which means there are serious failings and it needs to make significant improvements.
RSH investigated Harlow Council aſter
reviewing its Tenant Satisfaction Measure (TSM) results. RSH concluded that the council had: • Carried out fire risk assessments for only 20% of buildings that it should have done, out of its 9,100 social housing homes.
• Over 500 high risk fire safety remedial actions overdue, and a further 1,500 medium risk actions overdue (the majority of which are more than 12 months overdue).
Harlow Council has employed an external consultant to help it to develop a detailed improvement plan as a priority and the RSH will be engaging with the landlord as it addresses these failings. Te Council is working to complete
the outstanding fire risk assessments and resulting actions, starting with the highest risk
blocks. RSH continues to scrutinise the Council closely and it must demonstrate that it is reducing risks to tenants as it puts these issues right. Kate Dodsworth, chief of regulatory
engagement at RSH, said: “It is unacceptable that Harlow Council has failed to meet fire safety requirements. Providing safe, decent homes for tenants begins with robust data, and this must include fire risk assessments for every home that needs one. “We identified these failings by scrutinising
the council’s TSM results. It is the landlord’s responsibility to notify us themselves of material issues. Our new proactive approach and expanded consumer remit is helping to bring issues to the surface earlier. We expect all providers to regularly review and evaluate their services to improve outcomes for tenants.” Te investigation was carried out as part of RSH’s responsive engagement work.
Councils are committed to improving housing standards
Councils are committed to addressing the challenges of unfit housing and want their residents to have the security of a safe and well- maintained home with any issues quickly and satisfactorily addressed. Responding to the Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s announcement of measures to
protect renters and drive up housing standards, Councillor Adam Hug, Local Government Association housing spokesperson, said: “It is good the Government is setting out measures to protect renters and improve housing standards. “Councils are committed to addressing the challenges of unfit housing and want their
18 | HMMOctober/November 2024 |
www.housingmmonline.co.uk
residents to have the security of a safe and well- maintained home with any issues quickly and satisfactorily addressed. “While we look forward to seeing the detail
behind this announcement, councils need further funding and support to raise standards in the private rented sector. “Councils could also do much more if they
were given the right tools, such as removing the requirement for Secretary of State approval for larger selective licensing schemes.”
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