The Housing & Regeneration Scrutiny Sub Committee met on Tuesday 13 January 2026 to review the performance of social housing landlords in Tower Hamlets, discuss the progress of the Your Voice, Our Action improvement programme, and examine the council's preparedness for the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Key concerns raised included the high percentage of non-decent homes managed by the council, issues with repairs and safety checks across various landlords, and the implementation of new tenant protection legislation.

Landlord Performance Report Q2 2025/26

The committee reviewed the Q2 2025/26 Landlord Report, which details the performance of registered providers (RPs) in Tower Hamlets against the Regulator of Social Housing's Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs).

Decent Homes: A significant concern highlighted was that Tower Hamlets Council has the highest percentage of non-decent homes at 26.4%. While this figure is reportedly dropping due to planned investment and accelerated stock condition surveys, a substantial number of homes still require intervention, primarily due to aging building elements like roofs, windows, and doors. The council aims to reduce non-decency to 18-22% by March 2026. Several other providers, including Spitalfields Housing Association, Tower Hamlets Community Housing, Providence Row Housing Association, and Poplar HARCA, reported 0% non-decency.

Repairs: The report indicated that Poplar HARCA, Spitalfields Housing Association, and Gateway Housing Association achieved high rates for non-emergency repair completions. However, Clarion Housing Association, London & Quadrant (L&Q), and EastEndHomes showed lower performance in this area. For emergency repairs, while many providers achieved high completion rates, Peabody and Notting Hill Genesis (NHG) performed less well.

Complaints: Tower Hamlets Council, Riverside, and Clarion Housing Association received the highest volumes of complaints. Notting Hill Genesis and Riverside had the highest rate of complaints relative to their stock size. Conversely, Poplar HARCA and L&Q received the fewest complaints relative to stock size.

Safety Checks:

• Gas Safety: Most providers reported near-complete compliance, with Spitalfields, Providence Row, and Tower Hamlets Community Housing (THCH) achieving 100%. EastEndHomes and Sanctuary reported lower compliance rates.
• Fire Safety: Seven providers achieved 100% compliance, while EastEndHomes showed room for improvement. Tower Hamlets Council's compliance rate was 97.3%, with a programme in place to reach 100%.
• Asbestos Safety: Eight providers achieved 100% compliance. Riverside and Tower Hamlets Council reported notably lower compliance rates, with the council having a programme to reach 100%.
• Water Safety: Seven providers achieved 100% compliance. EastEndHomes identified a need for further work with managing agents to improve governance and communication regarding water safety checks.
• Lift Safety: Four providers achieved 100% compliance. Tower Hamlets Council, Poplar HARCA, and THCH showed mid-to-high compliance, while EastEndHomes and Gateway Housing Association had the lowest rates.

Anti-social Behaviour (ASB): Tower Hamlets Council reported the highest percentage of stock affected by ASB cases, followed by Providence Row.

Re-let Times: Gateway Housing Association and Tower Hamlets Council had the fastest standard re-let times. Notting Hill Genesis, Sanctuary, and Riverside had the longest standard re-let times. For major works re-lets, L&Q had the longest, while Tower Hamlets Council had the shortest.

Vacant Units: Riverside had the highest percentage of stock unavailable for letting, followed by Peabody Housing Association and EastEndHomes. EastEndHomes is reportedly working to resolve significant issues with contractors and internal processes related to vacant units and relets.

Your Voice, Our Action & Big Door Knock

The committee received an update on the Your Voice, Our Action regulatory improvement programme and the Big Door Knock initiative.

Regulatory Improvement Programme: Following a self-referral to the Housing Regulator in October 2024 and a C3 grading in April 2025, Tower Hamlets Council developed a regulatory improvement plan. Your Voice, Our Action Phase One, running until March 2026, aims to address failings and weaknesses to improve housing management services, ensure compliance with Consumer Standards, and place residents' voices at the heart of services. The programme has 128 deliverables, with 78 completed, 47 in progress, and 3 not started. Key achievements include policy updates, streamlined voids processes, a new damp and mould policy, a reduction in the housing applications backlog, improved complaint handling, and enhanced health and safety compliance. Future work will focus on Phase Two, including redesigning the ASB service and restructuring the contact centre.

Big Door Knock Initiative: This initiative, conducted between June and September 2025, involved council staff visiting 2,004 homes across 76 blocks. The objectives were to improve residents' perception of the service, engage them in service design, create effective channels for issue identification and response, and foster accountability among staff. Of the 417 engagement surveys completed, 75% of residents rated council communication as average or above. Issues raised by residents included repairs (22%), ASB (18%), individual support needs (8%), and condensation, damp, and mould (7%). The initiative led to improved contact with hard-to-reach residents, increased staff visibility, and facilitated cross-team collaboration and issue resolution. Lessons learned include the need for better preparedness, digital integration for real-time updates, and improved communication with residents about engagement opportunities.

Renters' Rights Act 2025 Update and Council Preparedness

The committee discussed the council's preparedness for the Renters' Rights Act 2025, which received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025 and will see most changes come into effect on 1 May 2026.

Key Provisions of the Act:

• Abolition of 'No-Fault' Evictions: Section 21 evictions will be ended, requiring landlords to provide valid reasons for eviction.
• Transition to Periodic Tenancies: All tenancies will become periodic, offering greater security.
• Rent Increase Regulations: Landlords will be limited to one rent increase per year, aligned with market rates.
• Enhanced Property Standards: The Decent Homes Standard will be extended to the private rental sector.
• Anti-Discrimination Measures: Landlords will be prohibited from discriminating against tenants based on benefits or having children.
• Ban on Rental Bidding Wars: Landlords will not be permitted to accept offers above the advertised rent.
• Restrictions on Upfront Rent Payments: Limits will be placed on the amount of rent landlords can demand in advance.

Council Preparedness: A monthly working group, chaired by Karen Swift, Director of Housing Policy, Strategy & Regulatory Assurance, has been established, comprising representatives from Legal, Trading Standards, Health and Housing, Housing Options, Homelessness, and Strategy and Policy. A risk register has been created, and a penalties table detailing enforcement measures has been drafted. Affected services have assessed the impact on resources and the utilisation of new burdens funding. The council plans to communicate changes to landlords and tenants through direct mailshots, estate agents, and its website. Trading Standards will monitor rent increases and market rates, with residents encouraged to report concerns. The council is also preparing for the introduction of a national landlord database later in 2026.

Concerns were raised about the clarity of the Act's application to existing tenancies and the process for determining market rates for rent increases. It was clarified that the Act primarily affects private tenants and that landlords will need to adhere to the new eviction regulations after May 2026. The council intends to develop an enforcement policy to be presented to Cabinet in July or August 2026.

Any Other Business

A query was raised regarding a forthcoming Housing Asset Management Strategy, with a leaseholder representative expressing concern that it was being circulated to the public without prior presentation to the committee. The Chair noted this and will look into it outside of the meeting.

The meeting concluded with a reminder about a site visit arranged for Wednesday, 21 January 2026, and the date of the next Housing & Regeneration Scrutiny Sub Committee meeting on 9 March 2026.