Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that housing associations are held accountable for the (a) quality and (b) safety of homes they (i) manage and (ii) build.

Alongside delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding a generation, the government is committed to driving a transformational and lasting change in the safety and quality of homes.

Registered providers of social housing are required to deliver the outcomes of the standards set by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH). The Regulator conducts routine inspections of large registered providers to assess whether they are delivering the outcomes set by the standards. The Regulator has a series of powers at its disposal when it identifies serious failings.

On 2 July 2025, we launched consultations on an updated and modernised Decent Homes Standard and on a new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard. These new standards would be binding on registered providers of social housing.

The government will bring Awaab’s Law into force for the social rented sector from October this year. Awaab’s Law is vital legislation that will empower social tenants to hold their landlords to account using the full force of the law if they fail to investigate and fix hazards within their homes within set timescales. It will also allow tenants to access the Housing Ombudsman if their landlord does not adhere to strict timelines for action.

New requirements relating to electrical safety will also require social landlords to carry out electrical safety checks at least every five years, as well as mandatory appliance inspections on all electrical appliances that are provided by the landlord.

In respect of new build homes, all building works must meet the safety and performance requirements set out in the Building Regulations 2010. The building regulations set minimum legal performance standards for new building work including when a building is being designed, constructed, or subject to major re-design. The building regulations are enforced through the building control process. Building control conduct checks to assure compliance with the building regulations.