The government is inviting feedback on its new proposals for social housing in a public consultation.

The new proposals aim to improve the quality of social housing and services, introducing a series of standards that social housing landlords have to meet. Landlords will also have to show the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) that it is meeting these targets. 

The RSH (a government organisation under the remit of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities) has said that the new proposals aim to be meaningful, enforceable, and possible. 

The proposals centre around four key standards which landlords have to meet. These will either replace or overlap with another five standards which already exist. 

The four standards are: 

The safety and quality standard: This means housing providers must provide tenants with safe, quality housing. In practice, this could involve regular quality and health and safety checks, timely repairs, and suitable adaptations should they be necessary (i.e for tenants with restricted mobility). 

The neighbourhood and community standard: This standard aims to ensure that neighbourhoods and not just houses are of a decent standard. This would mean maintaining shared space, and working with other local organisations such as the police to ensure that the area as a whole is a pleasant place to live.

The transparency, influence and accountability standard: This aims to ensure that tenants can get necessary information from and to their landlords. For example, landlords have to give their tenants information about their performance - including 'tenant satisfaction measures' - and the complaint process should be easily accessible. 

The tenancy standard: This general measure would ensure the letting process was fair and clear. As the RSH states: "Registered providers must allocate and let their homes in a fair and transparent way that takes the needs of tenants and prospective tenants into account. This requirement includes allocating adapted and purpose-built homes to tenants who need them, where possible."

A previous housing clause stated that landlords must ensure houses do not remain empty for too long. Under these proposals, that regulation has now been removed, 'to keep it focussed on fairness and transparency'. 

The proposals come amid criticism from some organisations that social housing provision is insufficient. Housing charity Shelter, for one, says: "Right now, we're facing a national housing emergency. Successive governments have failed to provide the good quality, stable social housing people need, leaving millions shut out and struggling to find a secure home. 

"This is why we're campaigning to ensure the government invests in a new generation of social homes. Demand more social housing: sign our petition."

The RSH nonetheless maintains that these new proposals come with direction from government, in line with a social housing charter introduced in 2020. 

You can respond to the proposals (and read them in a variety of different formats) HERE. The deadline for giving your feedback is 6pm on 17 October.

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