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East Anglian association downgraded to G3
A 2,900-home East Anglian housing association has been downgraded to non-compliant by the regulator because of “significant weaknesses” in its governance.
Suffolk Housing Society has gone from a G1 rating to G3. The regulator found the association’s board “failed to demonstrate an effective approach to reporting, quantification and management of key risks”.
It also found weaknesses in the association’s internal controls assurance arrangement.
Its financial viability has also been downgraded from V1 to V2.
The association has had “constrained financial capacity” and has had to manage the risks surrounding this but the regulator said the “timeliness and quality of reporting has not enabled this to happen”. There has also been a lack of “robust” information for the board to consider.
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The organisation’s stress-testing is “inadequate” and its mitigation strategies are “not fully developed”, the regulator said.
The board operated for a “significant period” without an effective internal audit function but steps have been taken to address this through appointing internal auditors. However, the regulator added that there is evidence that the board has not had enough oversight over this aspect of the association’s work.
A spokesperson for Suffolk Housing Society said: “We are disappointed with this news, but are already taking action to address these issues and will continue to work closely with the [regulator] over the coming months to make further improvements.
“It is important to stress that the [regulator’s] judgement is no reflection on the safety or quality of the services which we provide, which continue to receive consistently positive feedback from our tenants.”
