Many housing organisations - including councils - "under-prepared" for TSA regime

Fears are growing that many housing organisations – including stock-holding local authorities – are under-prepared for the Tenant Services Authority’s new regulatory framework.

The Chartered Institute of Housing surveyed 150 human resources professionals and senior housing executives working in ALMOs, housing associations and local authorities. Of these, some 45% said the new regulatory framework, which comes into force in April, would have minimal impact on their organisation or they were unsure about what impact it would have.

Just a third (36%) felt the TSA framework would have an impact or major impact on their organisation.

The key elements of the TSA’s framework include:

• A strong emphasis on tenant scrutiny, with providers required to involve tenants in assessing their performance
• The absence of codes of practice or regulatory guidance notes, with the focus on providers achieving outcomes
• The emphasis on local standards, which will require providers to work with tenants to set standards based on local needs and priorities
• The importance of sector-led improvement, which will require providers to learn from each other.

Richard Capie, CIH director of policy and practice, said: “The introduction of the new regulatory system in England will inevitably mean that housing organisations will need to change and the work of housing professionals will also have to evolve.

“New skills and knowledge will be needed and our research shows that many organisations may be under-prepared and not fully ready to respond to what is a fundamentally new approach to regulating affordable housing.”