L&Q is looking for contractors to carry out £2.7bn worth of work covering upgrades, fire safety and decarbonisation measures.
The 105,000-home landlord is looking to appoint multiple contractors on a regional basis for the 15-year contracts starting in April next year.
Last July, the G15 giant said that it planned to spend £1.9bn on existing homes over the next seven years, partly to ensure that its properties maintained the government’s Decent Homes Standard.
Among the work being tendered, covering all regions where the landlord operates, is “cladding/external wall system renewals, fire risk assessment works including fire door set upgrades, timber decking renewal, sprinkler installations and fire alarms”.
It has previously said that the full cost of fire safety work alone will be around £450m.
Other work includes roof renewals and “new kitchens and bathrooms’’, according to the contract notice.
The energy efficiency measures will initially focus on internal, cavity and external wall insulation, a spokesperson told Inside Housing. Works will then extend to heating and window upgrades, air and ground source heat pumps, and solar panels.
The group is upping its investment in its existing stock amid widespread concerns about the condition of some social housing. It is also cutting back significantly on its development spend, having slashed its annual housebuilding target by 70% because of rising fire safety costs.
Gerri Scott, group director of customer service at L&Q, said that the new programme of work “puts much-needed investment into L&Q’s homes” and will be overseen by its residents services board.
“They will advocate on behalf of all residents to ensure that the programme delivers to timescale, [and] is value for money and high quality,” she said.
“Potential contractors should be in no doubt that the success of the programme is dependent on the quality of the resident experience,” she added.
L&Q has been among a number of housing associations and councils that have come under scrutiny following an ITV investigation exposing squalid living conditions for some residents.
The landlord issued an apology last May for failing to deal with damp and mould complaints from a tenant with a serious health condition.