The London Borough of Brent has failed to meet the outcomes in the consumer standards and has been given a C3 grading from the Regulator of Social Housing, as part of three regulatory judgements published today.
LB Brent made a self-referral in April concerning the quality and accuracy of its fire safety data.
Following a spot check, the council found that although actions from fire risk assessments had been closed, evidence of completion was not available in all instances and that some actions had not been completed.
RSH’s engagement with LB Brent also found:
-
Data for fire safety, smoke and carbon monoxide safety, asbestos management and water safety could not be reconciled.
-
Concerns about the data validation process that took place prior to LB Brent implementing its new asset management system.
-
Although LB Brent is reporting that it has 95% of its stock condition data, almost half of its homes have not had a recorded survey.
RSH will continue to engage with LB Brent as it seeks to address the issues identified, including evidencing that it is taking reasonable steps to mitigate risks to tenants as it creates and delivers its improvement plan.
Following an inspection, Metropolitan Housing Trust has been downgraded from G1 to G2. This means it meets RSH’s governance requirements overall but needs to improve some aspects of its arrangements to support continued compliance.
Improvements are needed in how the board assures itself around the delivery of outcomes of the Safety and Quality standard, and the quality of its stress testing and mitigation strategies.
Metropolitan Housing Trust also received C2/V2 gradings.
Mosscare St Vincent’s Housing Group was upgraded from C2 to C1, following responsive engagement.
Kate Dodsworth, Chief of Regulatory Engagement at RSH, said:
Accurate, up-to-date data is fundamental to landlords delivering safe, decent homes for tenants. LB Brent has engaged positively with us since their self-referral and we will continue to work closely with them as they put things right for tenants.
Our scrutiny of housing associations’ governance and viability is vital to ensuring landlords are manging their risks effectively. Things can go wrong without robust board challenge and rigorous stress-testing. We will continue to regulate for a sector that is well run and viable, to enable more and better homes for tenants.
Notes to Editors
| Provider | Consumer grade | Governance grade | Viability grade | Process |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London Borough of Brent | C3 | – | – | Responsive Engagement |
| Metropolitan Housing Trust Limited | C2 | G2 (downgrade) | V2 | Inspection |
| Mosscare St Vincent’s Housing Group Limited | C1 | G1 (from previous inspection Sept 2024) | V2 (from previous inspection Sept 2024) | Responsive Engagement |
-
RSH regulates housing associations and other private registered providers against its full set of standards. Councils are regulated against the consumer and rent standards only.
-
More information about RSH’s responsive engagement, programmed inspections and consumer gradings is also available on its website.
-
RSH promotes a viable, efficient and well-governed social housing sector able to deliver more and better social homes. It does this by setting standards and carrying out robust regulation focusing on driving improvement in social landlords, including local authorities, and ensuring that housing associations are well-governed, financially viable and offer value for money. It takes appropriate action if the outcomes of the standards are not being delivered.
-
For general enquiries email enquiries@rsh.gov.uk. For media enquiries please see our Media Enquiries page.
