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Fiona MacGregorFiona MacGregor was appointed the Regulator of Social Housing’s (RSH) Chief Executive on 1 October 2018.
RSH was previously part ...more
As we recover from this pandemic, maintaining standards is more important than ever
Our focus may have been on the coronavirus response, says Fiona MacGregor. But as we emerge from the crisis, the need to maintain standards is as high as ever
Three months into the pandemic, dealing with constant change is a part of life – there seems to be a ‘new normal’ every few weeks. Our Coronavirus Operational Response Survey shows that providers have tried to do the right thing for tenants and staff by keeping key operations going.
Current challenges include scaling back up repairs and safety check programmes, working with tenants affected by the pandemic, and restarting development. However, previous issues have not disappeared and some have gained fresh importance. Among these are the quality of existing social housing and services to tenants and the shape of new social housing provision.
In the context of the third anniversary of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, providers’ priority is still building safety, along with the challenge of how to meet the 2050 zero-carbon deadline. These challenges mean that much existing stock will need greater investment than envisaged a few years ago. This may impact capacity and boards’ risk appetite for other activities, including development.
Another major legacy of the Grenfell tragedy is landlords’ relationships with tenants. While we await the white paper, it has been encouraging to see the sector engaging more, listening to tenants and trying to improve transparency and scrutiny. The coronavirus pandemic has further underlined the importance of this.
The question of where new social housing will come from also continues. There is debate about the cross-subsidy model and how to deliver social housing across a range of markets. These are difficult questions for boards. As the regulator, our interest is more in the quality of thinking and decision-making than the answers. We expect boards to understand the markets they operate in and how best they can contribute to new supply while also managing risks.
“Being on our register is a privilege and being a social housing provider is not for those with short-time horizons or an eye on large profits”
As they consider how quickly they restore development plans to pre-coronavirus levels, boards need to ensure good service is provided to existing tenants while helping those whose lives could be transformed by having a secure, high-quality social home.
New social housing is also now coming from a range of new entrants, some of which are bringing fresh ideas and different sources of capital. Sadly, we also see organisations looking to exploit the badge of becoming a registered provider for their own ends, for example, by presenting themselves as ‘not for profit’ when their motivation appears to be enabling counter-parties to make money. Some may think that registration status is a route to make a quick return for themselves or associates without considering the obligations it entails. Such applicants cannot expect an easy time from us.
Being on our register is a privilege and being a social housing provider is not for those with short-time horizons or an eye on large profits. It is about being long-term stewards of people’s homes and providing good services to tenants. We expect high standards of those organisations that aspire to become registered providers and that they will continue to meet regulatory standards.
The coronavirus crisis has underlined the importance of a safe and secure home. For many, their best hope of achieving that is through a social housing tenancy. Sadly, demand continues to outstrip supply and possibly the biggest question we all face is how to ensure good-quality homes are available for all. While that question may feel like the ‘old normal’, it is even more pointed as the process of recovering from the pandemic begins.
Fiona MacGregor, chief executive, Regulator of Social Housing
