30/06/2026
Before we take a short break for the summer, we’re bringing you our final snapshot packed with developments from what has already been a busy season for the housing sector.
This month, we take a closer look at the Regulator of Social Housing’s (RSH) new discussion paper on the future of the economic standards, alongside updates on the Social Housing Bill, the RSH’s review of consumer regulation, the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) annual mutuals review and new regulatory judgements. Finally, we share a few key takeaways from the NHF Governance Conference.
With a new Prime Minister, an ambitious housing agenda and plenty of regulatory activity already underway, we suspect there will be plenty to catch up on when we return in September!
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RSH publishes discussion paper on future economic standards
On 9 June, the RSH published a sector-wide discussion on the future of economic regulation, with a particular focus on the way it regulates governance, financial viability and value for money so that social landlords are better able to meet future challenges. The economic standards (save for the Rent Standard) were last revised in 2015, so this is the first comprehensive review in over a decade. The discussion paper is intended to inform a formal consultation on the revised economic standards in 2027.
The RSH notes that the sector has “changed substantially” since the last review of economic regulation. It has grown in size and complexity, provides more homes (including those provided by for-profit RPs) but by fewer, often larger landlords, due to several mergers and ambitious development programmes. Against a backdrop of the ongoing balancing act between development ambitions for new supply (which is also a key Government priority) and investing in current homes, RPs are under sustained financial pressure, with margins more than a third lower than ten years ago.
The overall approach from the RSH is to enhance its economic regulation to become more targeted, make better use of data and more proactive in terms of addressing weakness and failure more quickly. The paper is structured across three core themes for discussion, which have various ideas and prompts for respondents to consider:
Discussion prompt 1: ‘essentials’ for more and better homes
The RSH identifies five essentials for social landlords – being “centred on social housing”, “independent and autonomous”, “financially sustainable”, “able to deliver effectively” and “capable of failing” and asks for views on these themes. The RSH is particularly interested in the concept of “failing safely” i.e. so that tenants remain in their homes, social homes remain in the regulated sector and if possible, secured creditors are made whole in the event of a RP failure. Whilst this has generally been the case in previous failures in the sector, the RSH’s specific acknowledgement that failure is possible and can be managed safely is new and demonstrates there may be specific focus on this in the revised economic standards.
Discussion prompt 2: strengthening accountability and delivery
This section looks at strategy-making, decision-making, planning and delivery. The RSH states that it intends to shift its approach and more strongly investigate and scrutinise business plans. It is considering whether to prescribe specific and exacting requirements for business plans and their delivery. The RSH is also asking for views on whether there should also be further scrutiny of landlords’ performance, requirements for landlords to appraise their capacity and set themselves targets for delivery, and scrutiny of stress testing, flexes and mitigation plans.
Discussion prompt 3: regulating for more and better social homes
This section sets out ideas for how the RSH might change its approach to regulatory engagement, data and reporting as it completes its round of inspections in 2028. It states that it intends to be more targeted to actively regulate higher-risk landlords and potentially scrutinise below landlord level to address localised failures and poor performance. It intends to collect more granular detail from landlords about homes and services to do this. The RSH is also seeking views about changing its approach to higher risk small landlords (i.e. those with under 1,000 homes) and strategically important large landlords where extra regulatory requirements may be necessary to safeguard the sector more generally.
Although the proposals are at a formative stage, it is clear the RSH has already put considerable thought into how the new economic standards could work. For some, the discussion paper may feel like a natural continuation of themes already emerging through consumer regulation, recent regulatory judgements and wider Government ambitions around housing delivery. It also reflects a growing recognition that sector’s future challenges cannot be addressed solely though compliance - there is likely to be increased scrutiny at a more granular level, with different regulatory approaches for different risk profiles. There may be stronger requirements around data and a renewed focus on good governance practices.
Responses to the consultation are due by 30 September and we will be drafting our own response over the summer. We would welcome views from clients and contacts in the sector on any of the proposals or discussion points raised. If there are particular issues, opportunities or concerns you have, please get in touch with Sarah Greenhalgh and/or Rose Klemperer and we would be pleased to incorporate these into our submission.
RSH launches review to evaluate the impact of consumer regulation
Two years (if you can believe that!) since the revised consumer standards and the new programme of landlord inspections were introduced, the RSH has launched an independent evaluation to look at the impact of its consumer regulation and to evidence what impact the reforms have had for social housing tenants and landlords.
The RSH will write to all RPs and relevant representative organisations to invite participation in the evaluation and the RSH has confirmed that individual contributions from RPs will not be used for regulatory purposes. The project will run over two years, with the final report expected to be published in 2028.
As the consumer regime continues to mature, the evaluation provides an opportunity for RPs to help shape the evidence base on what is working well and where further improvements may be needed, while also offering valuable insight into how the RSH assesses the long-term impact of consumer regulation on resident outcomes.
Social Housing Bill update
On 14 May 2026, the Government introduced the Social Housing Bill (the Bill) to Parliament. The Bill contains a range of measures aimed at protecting existing social housing stock, supporting the delivery of new social homes, strengthening protections for victims of domestic abuse and removing a number of historic provisions from the statute book that have not been implemented or are no longer aligned with Government policy.
Of particular interest to many providers will be the proposed reforms to the Right to Buy (RTB) scheme, including changes that are expected to apply to tenants of private RPs with the preserved RTB. The Bill would also introduce new requirements around the disposal of social housing outside of the sector, including requirements for providers to notify local authorities and other providers before certain disposals can proceed.
While the Bill remains at an early stage in its parliamentary journey, it provides a clear indication of the Government’s continued focus on protecting social housing stock and increasing the supply of affordable homes. Providers may wish to monitor its progress closely, particularly where proposals could affect stock rationalisation, asset management strategies or the preserved RTB arrangements. We will continue to provide you with updates.
You can read more here:
- the accompanying Guide to the Bill;
- our RTB update.
Mutuals annual overview
The FCA in its role as the registering authority for mutual societies, which community benefit societies are, has published its 2025/26 annual report on the mutuals registration function. Some key points to note include:
- continued focus on supporting the growth of the mutual sector, including the launch of the Mutual Societies Development Unit and a free pre-application support service for new and existing societies;
- the publication of the Mutuals Registering Authority Report, setting out recommendations and observations on the future development of the mutual sector;
- continued investment in the Mutuals Society Portal and Mutuals Public Register, alongside measures designed to simplify registration processes and reduce administrative burdens for societies; and
- growth in the number of registered societies, with community benefit societies continuing to increase in number during 2025/6.
Many in the RP sector will be familiar with the FCA Mutuals Team and the update provides a useful reminder of the continuing policy focus on supporting the mutual sector.
RSH - Regulatory judgements
Key findings from regulatory judgements over the last month include:
- Eight RPs given the highest consumer grade (C1), which included three upgrades (the other gradings were first consumer gradings following inspection). On the upgraded organisations, the RSH noted improvements to repairs services and improved information held on the diverse needs of tenants.
- The RSH identified serious non-compliance with the Rent Standard at one local authority which overcharged around 4,000 tenants and former tenants due to errors it made in setting rents, totalling approximately £415,000.
- Pivotal Housing Association was removed from the register of RPs. Pivotal is a lease-based provider of supported accommodation and the RSH previously took enforcement action against them in 2025. The RSH published its decision and concluded that Pivotal has failed to meet the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and the Rent Standard.
Key takeaways from the NHF Governance Conference
Held on 18 June, this year’s NHF Governance Conference had a positive tone overall, notwithstanding the uncertainties in the political landscape. Our key takeaways from the sessions we attended are below:
- Political landscape: the discussions on the political landscape highlighted that whilst there has been a package of measures for the sector at a national level which promote stability and a commitment from government to delivering more social housing, the political picture at a local level is a lot more uncertain. It is important for the sector to articulate the real value it has for our customers and the communities we serve.
- STAIRs: RPs need to be ready for STAIRS Chapter 1 in October 2026. Translating the policy statement into operational reality will not be easy and will require organisations to make judgement calls on what needs to be published and how. In order to prepare meaningfully for the changes, a wide range of teams across RPs will need to be trained and ready to work together to deal with requests.
- Building a resilient recovery plan: in our session on “Building a Resilient Recovery Plan” alongside Donna Johnson at Willow Tree Housing Partnership, we discussed that in a world of increasing uncertainty, resilience is no longer simply about responding to disruption or risks as and when they emerge. RPs of all shapes and sizes need to really understand their customers, business model and key risks before they crystallise. Stress testing is key to this, and some organisations may also wish to consider developing a “living will”, which is a contingency plan which could be implemented if necessary if an RP was to face a catastrophic shock.
- AI and governance: AI is becoming increasingly important as both a tool and a risk for RPs and it needs to be better understood by all areas of the business. Whilst AI can bring huge benefits to RPs, there are also many lessons to be learnt from the risks it brings. From a governance perspective, AI works best as a tool when it is integrated into governance frameworks, policies and decision-making so that staff and stakeholders have a clear framework to work within.
- Governance reporting: across the conference, there was strong emphasis on better reporting to boards and getting the balance right between providing the information required for effective decision-making and not over reporting.
Events and articles
We’re attending the Housing Community Summit on the 8th and 9th September. Get in touch if you’re attending too.
On demand events
In this session our expert speakers, Kate Hicks, Aman Guru, Debbie Frost and Matt Chapman covered a number of key topics for the housing sector.
Watch the Housing Management Update session.
In this webinar, Kate Hicks and Matthew Watts from our Housing Management team, presented on the topic of dealing with the process and practicalities of recovering possession for Supported Housing Providers now that Phase 1 of the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 is in force.
Other articles you might be interested in:
The Right to Buy– An Update on Proposed Reforms
Planning enforcement: local authorities under pressure
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