Two landlords awarded top consumer grade in latest batch of regulatory judgements

Its improvement plan was also supported by “robust governance and financial resilience which reinforces the 40,000-home landlord’s ability to continue investing in homes, services and communities”.

Steve Coffey, group chief executive of Torus, said: “We are really proud to have received confirmation from the regulator that our consumer standards rating has been upgraded to C1. 

“This reflects the exceptional efforts of colleagues and board members across the organisation who have worked tirelessly to strengthen oversight, assurance and service quality for our customers. 

“Achieving C1, G1, V1 demonstrates our continued commitment to strong governance, financial resilience and delivering high-quality services for the communities we serve.”

Norwich City Council was also given a C1 grading after an inspection found the landlord has “an accurate and up-to-date understanding of tenants’ homes, takes proactive steps to comply with health and safety legislation”.

The council’s repairs service was described as “effective” in a way that “offers a wide range of engagement opportunities for tenants – using the feedback to influence service delivery”.

In this latest round of judgements, YMCA Thames Gateway Group was added to the English regulator’s gradings under review list while it investigates potential serious failings in the landlord delivering the outcomes of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and the consumer standards.

Worthing Homes was downgraded from G1 to G2 for governance following an inspection. The housing association meets RSH’s governance and financial viability requirements overall, but it needs to improve aspects of its governance to support continued compliance.

This includes the reliability, accuracy and completeness of the information it holds. However, work is already underway to strengthen these areas. The association also received C2 and V2 grades. 

One Vision Housing was also downgraded from G1 to G2. The landlord needs to improve some aspects of its governance, including board reporting to support improved oversight of safety and quality outcomes for tenants, as well as aspects of its stress-testing. It received C1 and V1 grades. 

Incommunities was given G1, V2 and C2 grades following an inspection. This is because there are some weaknesses in delivering the consumer standards, which it is working to improve.