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Croydon Council becomes second landlord to breach tenant standard after ITV investigation

Croydon Council has been found to be in breach of two of the English regulator’s key standards after an investigation by ITV News exposed terrible conditions for tenants living in some of its homes.  

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An investigation into Croydon Council was commissioned after poor conditions were discovered at the Regina Road development (picture: Google Street View)
An investigation into Croydon Council was commissioned after poor conditions were discovered at the Regina Road development (picture: Google Street View)
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Croydon Council has been found to be in breach of two of the Regulator of Social Housing’s key standards after an investigation by ITV News exposed terrible conditions for tenants living in some of its homes #UKhousing

A regulatory notice published by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) this morning found the council had breached the Home Standard and the Tenant Involvement and Empowerment Standard after it found that some of the homes the local authority managed were “uninhabitable and unsafe” and that some tenants were at “risk of serious harm” as a result of the conditions.

The decision by the RSH came after it was made aware of a media report by ITV News last month, which showed the living conditions of tenants in the Regina Road Estate in South Norwood and highlighted significant leaks, damp and mould issues, as well as concerns about resident safety.

Simultaneously to the ITV report, the council self-referred itself to the regulator.

The regulatory findings today makes Croydon Council the second social landlord to have breached the RSH’s Tenant Involvement and Empowerment Standard.


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The regulator’s report into the breach pointed to the ITV News piece as one of the reasons that prompted its investigation.

The ITV report highlighted the appalling living conditions of three households in the block and included images of walls turned completely black by mould and showed residents living with sodden carpets due to heavy leaks.

The residents featured in the report said they had been complaining to the Labour-run Croydon Council about the issues for more than a year.

After seeing the report, housing secretary Robert Jenrick tweeted that he was “appalled” by the conditions and said the government would be seeking urgent answers.

A subsequent independent report carried out by Ark Consultancy found that Croydon Council had “failed to deliver basic housing services” and concluded that its housing department had “a lack of care and respect for residents”.

Today the regulator said that this evidence, along with engagement with the council, showed the issues that arose were the result of widespread and longstanding failures by the council in relation to its repairs and maintenance service.

The RSH said: “Taking into account the issues present at the Croydon tower block, and the wider evidence about how Croydon has managed its housing stock and engaged with tenants, the regulator has concluded that Croydon has breached the Home Standard and the Tenant Involvement and Empowerment Standard.”

The report also found that the council had failed to provide an effective repairs service to its tenants and there was a lack of assurance that the local authority had an effective system in place to show it was meeting health and safety obligations.

As a result of these failures, residents were living in “unsafe and uninhabitable” living conditions, and other council tenants were at risk of experiencing the same conditions, the regulator said.

The report added that Croydon Council has demonstrated that it is now taking actions to improve its services to residents and that it would continue to monitor the situation to ensure it mitigates the risks for tenants. However, the RSH did not rule out further regulatory action if it is necessary.

Croydon is the latest council to have breached the Home Standard in recent years, with Gateshead, Runnymede, South Kevesten and Lambeth councils also found to have breached the standard. East Kent Housing, the former shared ALMO for Canterbury, Thanet, Folkestone & Hythe and Dover councils, also breached the Home Standard in 2019.

The Tenant and Empowerment Standard, which judges landlords on their performance in responding to residents’ concerns, has been breached far fewer times, with the first being lease-based provider Westmoreland in 2019.

Many in the sector had believed that it was impossible to breach the Tenant Involvement and Empowerment Standard because it requires the regulator to demonstrate serious detriment to tenants. In 2017, a director at the regulator said that it was a “very high threshold” for a landlord to be found in breach.

This standard was later strengthened in same year, with the regulator including a requirement on landlords to engage effectively with tenants and ensure they listened to feedback.

A spokesperson for Croydon Council said: “We accept the findings of the RSH, which were published today following our self-referral in March.

“We have taken immediate action to address the urgent issues they raise while developing a longer-term, wide-ranging improvement programme for our housing services, and our tenants will be fully involved in this work.

“As part of this we will strengthen our data management to ensure that we can provide the regulator with assurance that we are meeting our statutory responsibilities on health and safety. We will continue to work closely with the regulator as we take our improvement plan forward.”

An MHCLG spokesperson said: “The breaches identified in this case are deeply shocking and the Regulator’s decision demonstrates a serious and unacceptable failure at Croydon Council.

“We expect council leaders to take full responsibility and put in place immediate steps to ensure tenants are properly supported and housing is of a safe and decent standard.”

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