Equalities regulator issues guide for social housing providers on human rights law
The Equality and Human Rights Commission has published guidance for social housing providers on how to meet their obligations under human rights law.
The regulator insisted that the Human Rights Act 1998 made business sense for social housing providers “as it will help them to avoid complaints that could lead to expensive legal proceedings from tenants or criticism from the relevant regulators that could damage their reputation.”
The guidance – Human Rights at Home: guidance for social housing providers – explains what the Human Rights Act means in practice for social housing providers in relation to the following issues:
- allocation of housing
- the terms of tenancy agreements
- housing conditions: repairs and maintenance
- aids and adaptations
- environmental impact
- rent arrears and other breaches
- anti-social behaviour
- relationship breakdown
- death and succession
- buying the home
- specialist housing accommodation and specialist housing services
- long leaseholders
- change of landlord
- termination of tenancy and eviction
- social housing providers in Scotland.
The guidance includes sections on how to make decisions which comply with the Act and whether an organisation is subject to other rules which affect public authorities.
The EHRC said that while providers were obliged to comply with the Act, the guidance made it clear that the law “does not give people a right to housing or prevent landlords from taking proportionate action if tenants do not pay their rent or engage in anti-social behaviour”.
It added that the guidance would help providers identify potential human rights issues and take appropriate action, without fundamentally changing the way they work.
Helen Hughes, chief executive officer at the Commission, said: “Our role as a regulator is to help social housing providers understand what they need to do to meet their human rights obligations. Protecting the human rights of social housing tenants is not just the right thing to do, it also makes business sense.
"Human rights are about treating people with dignity and respect. These values should be the basic standard for any public service. Human rights are particularly important in relation to social housing, as people living in inadequate housing are more likely to have severe ill health, a disability or poor mental health.”
A copy of the guidance can be downloaded here. The EHRC emphasised that the guidance was neither a complete guide to all housing law and regulation, nor an exhaustive explanation of the HRA and was therefore no substitute for legal advice.
Philip Hoult
