Government’s new ‘competence and conduct’ standard will ‘improve service for all social housing tenants’

The government says social housing tenants will receive a fairer and better service from their housing provider, under new plans it has unveiled today. Under the new standards, providers will need to arm their staff … Read more

Course of the week

Condensation, damp and mould for non-technical officers: 13 February – Live virtual training  Condensation, damp and mould if left untreated can have profound consequences on quality of life and health as well as the fabric … Read more

Course of the week

Customer complaint handling workshop: 28 February – Live virtual training  The Housing Ombudsman says that 2 of every 3 complaints they see could have been handled better by the landlord. Getting complaint handling right saves … Read more

Housing association achieves world first for diversity and inclusion 

A housing association has become the first in the world to achieve the global Standard for Diversity and Inclusion in HR Management. Manningham Housing Association (MHA) was given the award following an on-site assessment and … Read more

HQN Training – new for 2024

New for 2024 all of our courses are now certificated with professional development hours. View all our upcoming public courses here.  Further details on professionalisation requirements and the competency and conduct standard for the social … Read more

Housing Quality Magazine January 2024

Welcome to the January 2024 edition of HQM. We start the year with a look at the planned 2024/25 rent increase and its implications for both landlords and residents. We also ask some of the … Read more

Opinion: Give boards a bigger range of voices – and stop worshipping the governance gurus

By Alistair McIntosh, HQN CEO If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. Why does no one ever follow that advice? A year or so ago I was on the train and got talking … Read more

HQN appoints Chloe Fletcher as new director

HQN is delighted to announce the appointment of Chloe Fletcher as a new director. A well-known and highly regarded figure in the social housing sector, Chloe joins from the National Federation of ALMOs, where she … Read more

HQN’s housing regulation quiz 2023

Who doesn’t look forward to a housing regulation quiz at this time of year? And we have one for you that gradually gets harder to really test hardcore regulation fans! If you don’t get 100%, … Read more

Phoenix host event to raise disability awareness in Lewisham

Phoenix Community Housing’s Disability Awareness Day event drew in crowds for an evening celebrating Lewisham’s diverse community. The Lewisham landlord opened the doors of its community building The Green Man on Tuesday 28 November to … Read more

Minister: Disabled people must do ‘their duty’ and work from home

Disabled people must work from home to do “their duty” or face losing benefits, a minister has said. Speaking to Sky News, Laura Trott, chief secretary to the Treasury, said: “Of course there should be … Read more

Latest member question: vulnerability policies

One of our members is looking for examples of vulnerability policies, where you may set out your approach to support and/or an enhanced service for customers based upon particular vulnerabilities they may have. If you … Read more

Housing Quality Magazine October 2023

The autumn edition of HQM features a big interview with Richard Blakeway, the Housing Ombudsman, in which he shares his insights into the service’s progress and his views on everything from leasehold to mergers. Lara … Read more

Data breaches put domestic abuse victims’ lives at risk, commissioner warns

Data breaches are putting the lives of domestic abuse victims at risk, the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) has warned. The warning comes after the ICO reprimanded seven organisations in the past 14 months for data … Read more

Opinion: Transforming digital services for residents

By Jess Ettridge, Connect 21 Facilitator – Strategic Improvement Team, Tenancy Super Guru Housing 21 is a leading not-for-profit provider of retirement living and extra care for older people of modest means. We operate in … Read more

Opinion: Supporting BAME residents into smaller homes

By Lee Bloomfield, Chief Executive of Manningham Housing Association Earlier this month I was asked to give oral evidence to the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Housing and Older People’s inquiry into the regeneration of outdated … Read more

Latest member question: EDI resident survey

Hi We are currently reviewing our EDI survey to residents and wanted to find the right wording and content to ask the question around disability.  We would initially ask – Do you have a disability … Read more

Older BAME housing association residents ‘need more support’ getting into smaller homes

The chief executive of Manningham Housing Association (MHA) has told a Westminster inquiry there needs to be better choices for older people from BAME communities to downsize their properties and receive a better offer of … Read more

HQN launches updated social housing regulation toolkit

HQN is delighted to announce our updated social housing regulation toolkit. The toolkit will help you to get ready for the start of what the minister says will be “Ofsted-style” inspections for housing. Every member … Read more

Housing association appoints new chief executive

Charmaine Simei will be the new chief executive of Tuntum Housing Association, succeeding Richard Renwick MBE who is due to retire in the autumn after almost three decades in the post. Ms Simei is currently … Read more

Severe maladministration found after council left vulnerable children in home with damp and mould

The Housing Ombudsman has found severe maladministration for a local authority for its lack of stage one complaint response on two separate occasions, which left a resident and her two vulnerable children in a home with damp … Read more

Opinion: A personal pledge to shape the future of housing leadership

By Elly Hoult, candidate for Chartered Institute of Housing vice presidency I am excited and honoured to step into the spotlight as a candidate for the position of vice president. This moment is a heartfelt … Read more

Opinion: We know what the problems are, but what about the solutions?

By Alysha Burrell, candidate for CIH vice presidency Skills shortages are crippling the housing market. There is inadequate investment in social housing, tenant and resident voices are rarely heard, and there is still a slow … Read more

Opinion: Everything begins at home

By Eileen Patterson MSc CIHCM, candidate for CIH vice presidency Everything begins at home. Having a decent safe and affordable home is a basic human right which impacts on life chances, health, education and employment … Read more

Opinion: Let’s regain our housing sector reputation!

By Hony Premlal, candidate for CIH vice presidency The prospect of serving as vice/president for CIH members presents an incredible opportunity for me to inspire our housing community to fight for our reputation. I am … Read more

Gypsy and Traveller communities ‘disproportionately’ impacted by energy crisis, research

New research finds many in the Gypsy, Traveller, Roma, and Nomadic (GTRNCs) communities have been left without government support during the energy crisis. The research, from National Energy Action in partnership with Friends, Families and … Read more

Ombudsman orders council to pay £thousands over delayed disability adaptations

The Housing Ombudsman has ordered a council to pay almost £13,000 to a resident after delays in providing his disability adaptations meant he was forced to undertake the work himself. Waverley Borough Council’s delay meant … Read more

Hello! from your new Network Business Manager

Hi! I’m Monica and I am your new Network Business Manager.  Just wanted to come on here and share my info: Email-           [email protected] Number –     0752 3919 622 Please feel … Read more

TSM survey

With the Tenant Satisfaction Measures now underway, we’re keen to check the progress members are making with their surveys and analysis. So, if you could spare 5 minutes to answer some simple questions, please click here. … Read more

Annual Conference 2023 – Kate Ratcliffe and Alistair McIntosh interview