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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to further strengthen the role of the Regulator of Social Housing to help regulate the exempt accommodation sector.

The Charter for Social Housing Residents: the Social Housing White Paper, published in November 2020, set out how the Government will transform the regulation of social housing to deliver a better deal for tenants. The White Paper set out a broad package of reforms to enable the Regulator of Social Housing to introduce robust, proactive regulation of consumer issues such as safety, transparency and tenant engagement, alongside the existing economic regulation regime. These changes will ensure social housing landlords will be held to account for delivery of good quality services to tenants.

The White Paper also included measures to respond to problems that have arisen in certain parts of the social housing sector, Some of which will include where exempt accommodation is provided. These include introducing a “look through power” to better investigate the dealings of registered providers with bodies outside the regulated sector; changing the definition of what a “non-profit” provider really is; and ensuring that the Regulator is notified when control of a registered provider changes.

While not all exempt accommodation is social housing, these powers will support the Regulator of Social Housing to do its job even more effectively for those landlords that are registered with it.

The Regulator has already taken action against 23 lease-based providers of specialised supported housing. The Government fully supports action to ensure landlords are providing safe, secure and decent accommodation.

In addition, the Government is committed to resolving these issues within the sector. My department has provided £5.4 million to five local authorities (Birmingham, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bristol and Hull) to test ways of improving quality and value for money in supported housing in year-long pilots. The pilots in September 2021 and the findings will be published in due course, along with a summary of best practice from the pilots. We are also considering what further action may be needed and I have not ruled out legislative options to regulate the sector.

Supporting the most vulnerable people in our society continues to be a priority for the Government and I’m committed to continue to raising standards in the sector.