The government's announcement on 6 February 2025 seems to have intensely accelerated the time frames to upgrade the current Decent Homes Standard. Angela Rayner's recent statement on 6 February states that she "will work in partnership with the sector to act as quickly as possible to deliver change and will clamp down on damp, mould and other hazards in social homes by introducing Awaab’s Law to the social housing sector this year".
The last Decent Homes Standard was set by the previous Labour government in 2006 to reflect the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) and it is certainly time to shine a light on the standard of housing since in 2023 it was reported by the Regulator of Social Housing in their statistical data return that 15,576 units of registered providers stock failed to meet the current Decent Homes Standard which was an increase of 130% on the 6,781 units reported for 2022. The data demonstrates that there is a significant problem with the standards of social rented accommodation across the country, highlighted by tragic consequences for tenants living in unhealthy and unsafe homes. As well as addressing basic safety measures the new standard may address key concerns for tenants such as thermal comfort, digital needs, and future proofing for climate change. In addition compliance standards may be tightened up for example checking electrical equipment more frequently and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
Landlords will quite rightly want to know where the costs of the upgraded standard will be met from with many landlords struggling to find the budgets to maintain existing housing at a decent standard at the moment.
Angela Raynor announced on 6 February that Awaab’s Law will come into force for the social housing sector from October this year and the government will implement this through a phased approach. Angela Rayner highlights that "this phased approach allows protections from damp and mould to be brought in earlier and enables an initial testing period to ensure the changes are implemented effectively". Therefore, it is critical for social landlords to take action as quickly as possible to resolve any issues. The proposed phasing will be as follows:With the potential for an upgraded Decent Homes Standard and implementation of Awaab's law providers of social housing will need to future proof their long-term asset management contracts to allow for changes to the standards and to work collaboratively with their contractors and suppliers to rise to the new challenges.
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From October 2025 onwards (Phase 1), landlords will be required to address damp and mould hazards within fixed timescales. Also, they will have to quickly address all emergency repairs (whether they relate to damp and mould or any other hazard) within a 24 hour time frame.
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In 2026 (Phase 2), further requirements will apply to a variety of hazards besides damp and mould. The hazards include excess cold and excess heat; falls; structural collapse; fire, electrical and explosions; and hygiene hazards.
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In 2027 (Phase 3), Awaab’s Law will expand to include the remaining hazards in the HHSRS (excluding overcrowding). A full list of hazards can be found in Schedule 1 Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) Regulations 2005.
Designing an effective procurement strategy from the outset is essential to provide flexibility of programme and specifications and to anticipate potential new funding streams which may influence the work to undertaken to homes. The appointment of a competent contractor for the right price will focus both parties on the core outcomes of quality and safety. Clients should avoid "race to the bottom" price evaluation formulae which set any relationship off on the wrong footing. Clients need to establish a pre-tender "should cost" model– one that includes all of the social value asks and enhanced obligations etc – so that a client can see whether its budget is sufficient for the outcomes it wants to secure. Investment in, and the early engagement of, key supply-chain members is essential to avoid wasted time and cost further down the line and to inject design and delivery expertise into the project at the earliest possible stage.
We recommend use of alliancing forms of contract such as the Term Alliance Contract, TAC 1 to embody the spirit of partnership working and to utilise contractual processes to make it easier for the parties to address changes. For example using the Core Group to streamline decision making processes and to give early warning of changes in specification and legislation and to follow a clear process to implement the upgraded standards in collaboration with contractors and suppliers.
For further information please contact Katie Saunders and Rebecca Rees
