Consumer Standards 2024: What Housing Providers Must Know

The Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 transformed how social housing is regulated. The new Consumer Standards, effective from April 2024, establish specific requirements that all registered providers must meet—and the Regulator of Social Housing now has teeth to enforce them.

This guide explains the standards relevant to property condition and how to demonstrate compliance.

The New Regulatory Landscape

What's Changed

Before 2024, consumer regulation was largely reactive—the Regulator responded to serious failures. Now:

• Proactive consumer regulation applies to all registered providers
• Four new Consumer Standards set specific expectations
• Regular inspections will assess compliance
• Serious failures can result in enforcement action

The Four Consumer Standards

• Safety and Quality Standard: Homes must be safe, of good quality, and well-maintained
• Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard: Tenants must be informed and involved
• Neighbourhood and Community Standard: Communal areas and neighbourhoods managed well
• Tenancy Standard: Fair allocation and tenancy management

For damp and mould, the Safety and Quality Standard is most directly relevant.

Safety and Quality Standard: Key Requirements

Quality of Homes

The standard requires providers to:

• Keep homes in good repair
• Meet the Decent Homes Standard as a minimum
• Make sure homes are free from serious hazards
• Carry out repairs and maintenance within reasonable timescales

Stock Knowledge

You must demonstrate you know your stock:

• Up-to-date stock condition data
• Understanding of where hazards exist or may develop
• Planned approach to addressing identified issues

Responsive Repairs

Specific expectations for repairs:

• Clear service standards communicated to tenants
• Effective appointment and completion systems
• Getting repairs right first time
• Following up to ensure satisfaction

The Damp and Mould Connection

Explicit Reference

The accompanying Code of Practice explicitly addresses damp and mould:

• Providers must take a proactive approach to identifying issues
• Not acceptable to wait for tenant complaints
• Must understand prevalence across the stock
• Must have adequate resources to respond

Link to Awaab's Law

The Consumer Standards and Awaab's Law are complementary:

• Awaab's Law sets specific timescales
• Consumer Standards set broader quality expectations
• Together they require proactive, systematic approaches
• Failure in one likely indicates failure in the other

Demonstrating Compliance

What Inspectors Will Look For

When the Regulator inspects, they'll want to see:

• Governance: Board awareness and oversight of property conditions
• Data: Stock condition information that's current and comprehensive
• Systems: Effective mechanisms for identifying and tracking issues
• Performance: Evidence that repairs happen within stated timescales
• Learning: Analysis of what's going wrong and how you're improving

Evidence Requirements

You need documentary evidence showing:

• How you identify properties at risk of damp and mould
• Your response when issues are reported
• Completion rates and timescales for related repairs
• Tenant satisfaction with repairs service
• Trend data showing improvement over time

Building a Compliant Approach

1. Know Your Stock

You can't manage what you don't understand:

• Current stock condition survey data
• Archetype analysis (which property types are at risk)
• Historical repair data highlighting problem areas
• Real-time environmental data where available

2. Proactive Identification

Don't rely solely on tenant reports:

• Regular property inspections
• Environmental monitoring in at-risk properties
• Analysis of repair histories for patterns
• Data from void inspections and lettings visits

3. Effective Response

When issues are identified:

• Clear processes for assessment and prioritisation
• Adequate contractor capacity for repairs
• Tracking systems ensuring nothing falls through gaps
• Follow-up to confirm resolution

4. Tenant Communication

The Transparency standard overlaps here:

• Clear information about how to report issues
• Updates on progress of reported cases
• Guidance on preventing condensation
• Access to performance data (how well you're doing)

5. Governance and Oversight

Board-level engagement is expected:

• Regular reporting on damp and mould cases
• Performance against repair timescales
• Trend analysis and action plans
• Investment decisions informed by condition data

Common Compliance Gaps

Reactive-Only Approach

Waiting for complaints isn't compliant. You need proactive systems to identify issues before tenants report them.

Incomplete Data

Stock condition surveys that don't cover all properties, or are more than 5 years old, won't satisfy inspectors.

Inconsistent Response

Different teams handling similar cases differently suggests lack of clear process. Consistency demonstrates systematic management.

Poor Documentation

If you can't evidence what you did and when, you can't demonstrate compliance. Record keeping is fundamental.

The Inspection Reality

What to Expect

Regulatory inspections typically include:

• Document requests (policies, procedures, performance data)
• Staff interviews (understanding of processes, reality vs. policy)
• Tenant feedback (direct surveys or review of complaints)
• Property inspections (sampling to verify conditions)

Judgement Framework

The Regulator grades providers on a four-point scale from C1 (compliant) to C4 (serious failure). Factors affecting judgement include:

• Extent of non-compliance
• Impact on tenants
• Provider's awareness and response
• Evidence of improvement trajectory

Technology Supporting Compliance

Environmental monitoring directly supports Consumer Standards compliance:

• Stock knowledge: Real-time data on property conditions
• Proactive identification: Alerts before issues become visible
• Evidence: Timestamped records of conditions and responses
• Performance tracking: Data on response times and outcomes