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Select Committee · Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee

The finances and sustainability of the social housing sector

Status: Closed Opened: 28 Mar 2023 Closed: 28 May 2024 21 recommendations 13 conclusions 1 report

This inquiry seeks to examine the finances and sustainability of the social housing sector in England. In recent years the financial pressures for social landlords have increased as they face the demands of building new homes, retrofitting existing stock to improve energy efficiency, remediating stock with cladding and other building safety issues, and tackling issues …

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Sixth Report - The Finances and Sustainability of the Socia… HC 60 8 May 2024 34 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

2 items
10 Recommendation Sixth Report - The Finances and Sustain… Rejected

Insist regeneration projects fully account for and meet existing tenants' needs.

Regeneration should respect the experience of existing tenants, whose lives will be disrupted, as well as those who will benefit from the new or additional homes in the future. An additional challenge is presented when estates contain both social housing tenants and leaseholders, who may be in a more challenging …

Government response. The government rejects setting detailed standards for providers' engagement in regeneration projects, citing the desirability of providers choosing their own service delivery and avoiding increased regulatory burden. However, it states that existing general consumer standards align with the committee's aspirations …
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
34 Recommendation Sixth Report - The Finances and Sustain… Rejected

Require Regulator to publish early intervention measures for financial problems in large housing associations

We are pleased that the Regulator is already engaging more regularly with larger housing associations. However, the Regulator must specifically set out what early measures it would be able to take and by when in the event that this engagement identified any notable problems. (Paragraph 168) 48 The Finances and …

Government response. The government describes existing regulatory processes and powers for identifying and addressing financial risks in housing associations, but rejects the call to specifically set out early measures and timelines, stating it would fetter its discretion to react to specific situations.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Oral evidence sessions

4 sessions
Date Witnesses
22 Jan 2024 Bernadette Conroy · Regulator of Social Housing, Jonathan Walters · Regulator of Social Housing, Peter Denton · Homes England, Shahi Islam · Homes England, The Baroness Scott of Bybrook OBE · Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities View ↗
11 Sep 2023 Dave Meseck · DMG Eco, Felix Ejgel · S&P Global Ratings, Gemma Bourne · Big Society Capital, Neil Brown · Inclusion Group, Simon Century · Legal and General, Steve Collins · Rentplus-UK View ↗
19 Jun 2023 Conrad Hall · Newham Council, Councillor Pippa Heylings · Local Government Association, Deborah Heenan · Populo, Jamie Kellett · abrdn, John Marr · UK Finance, Kathryn Jones · Dudley Council, Michael Scorer · Southwark Council, Piers Williamson · The Housing Finance Corporation View ↗
12 Jun 2023 Fiona Fletcher Smith · G15, James Prestwich · Chartered Institute of Housing, Kate Henderson · National Housing Federation, Kate Wareing · Soha Housing, Paul Fiddaman · Karbon Homes, Professor Tony Crook · University of Sheffield View ↗

Correspondence

7 letters
DateDirectionTitle
17 Jan 2024 To cttee Letter from Minister Rowley to the Chair dated 16 January 2024 concerning givin…
17 Jan 2024 To cttee Letter from the Chair to the Housing Minister dated 15 January 2024 concerning …
13 Dec 2023 To cttee Letter from the Chair to the Housing Minister dated 5 December 2023 concerning …
8 Nov 2023 To cttee Letter from Rentplus concerning follow-up from the Committee’s session on 11 Se…
12 Sep 2023 To cttee Letter from Sage Homes to the Chair dated 24 July 2023 concerning finances of s…
12 Sep 2023 To cttee Letter from National Housing Federation, G15, Karbon Homes and Soha Housing to …
27 Jun 2023 To cttee Letter from Rentplus to the Chair dated 21 June 2023 concerning the Rent to Buy…