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 support housing association social tenants in rent arrears.

The government is clear that social landlords should seek to sustain tenancies and should only evict as a last resort.

Landlords will, when managing their social housing schemes, provide advice and assistance to those struggling financially, including signposting to support services.

The Pre-Action Protocol for Possession Claims by Social Landlords sets out the actions social landlords should take to support the tenant before they consider taking legal action for rent arrears. These actions include making early contact with tenants to discuss the cause of the arrears, checking eligibility for housing benefit, assisting with any claim, and agreeing affordable repayment terms for the arrears. The protocol can be found on the justice website here.

Consumer standards, which are set by the independent Regulator of Social Housing, define the outcomes which all registered providers of social housing must deliver. These require that registered providers must support tenants to maintain their tenancy or licence and prevent unnecessary evictions.