Issues around standards and repairs in the sector have received more attention after falling into the national media’s spotlight. But, as Mark Lawrence reveals, the problems are nothing new. So, why have the problems been allowed to build up, and how does the sector fix things?

“I feel like I’ve been treated like an animal” – just one of the many quotes obtained by ITV News during its investigation into repairs and standards issues within the social housing sector.

When the pictures and videos started emerging, some in the sector reacted in shock; others minimised it as “isolated incidents” – but the reality is that issues with repairs is nothing new.

The Housing Ombudsman’s annual reports have shown long-term issues: in 2016/17, 34% of all complaints to the Ombudsman were repairs related, with the following years seeing numbers of 37%, 39%, 38% and, most recently, 35% – it’s consistently the most complained about issue.

And even the Regulator of Social Housing has known about the risks, including it in every sector risk profile since 2013.

And when you look back at some of the comments made in those sector risk profiles, they’re some of the same accusations levelled at the sector in recent years. 2013’s sector risk profile urged landlords to “balance their ambition for growth against the need to invest in existing stock” and called for boards to have up-to-date stock data.

Only a year later, the regulator went further: “Boards should ensure it [repairs and maintenance spend] doesn’t simply become the balancing figure in their business plans which will store up significant maintenance requirements that need to be met in the future.”

There are several mentions of repairs costs being a factor in viability regulation, but that threat doesn’t seem to have yielded compliance.

Interestingly, the 2015 sector risk profile shows a change in tone, pointing to the rent reduction and the need for housing organisations to reduce costs with another warning for boards to “balance the risks between short-term efficiency gains and the impact and cost of deferring current investment plans for existing stock”.

There’s shift from 2017 onwards, with the introduction of consumer regulation and the tragedy at Grenfell Tower leading to more emphasis on safety and housing conditions.

With all these warnings from the RSH and all the data coming from the Housing Ombudsman, why was nothing ever done to turn the tide on this issue? Was it swept under the carpet? Was it the elephant in the room? Or did organisations and authorities get used to having a certain percentage of homes not in good condition?

There have been issues relating to both Brexit and Covid-19, with them both raising prices of materials and causing a shortage of labour.

At a recent Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Select Committee meeting, the Housing Ombudsman, Richard Blakeway, described current issues as a “perfect storm” – delays, building safety costs, Covid-19 and the slow introduction of new powers all being used to excuse the poor performance.

But one area that cannot be used as an excuse for the sector is resource. As shown in the box (right), the quarterly surveys from the regulator show a solid spend on repairs and maintenance over the years.

And with repairs now in the spotlight and resource needing to be increased, Fiona MacGregor, Chief Executive of the RSH, had a stern message for those who may use finances as an excuse.

“The notion that the sector cannot deliver on building safety and stock improvement as well as delivering new supply appears to be an overly stark dilemma.

“There’s no shortage of finance, and most providers have the capacity to raise more debt. Too often we see so-called ‘innovative solutions’ trying to solve a problem that doesn’t currently exist.”

So, what can be done?

According to the Housing Ombudsman, which produced a Spotlight report on repairs, most cases come from new lettings, responsibility queries, time taken and recordkeeping.

Communication is another huge friction point and the report says it’s important that it’s addressed, and that all staff involved in the repairs process are properly trained and have the tools needed to provide a professional service.

The threat of more regulation also seems
to be working, with many local authorities and housing associations referring themselves to the regulator for being in breach of the Home Standard. A sign of things to come, maybe, as organisations get their house in order.

The regulator also hasn’t been shy in telling providers what it, and residents, expect from repairs.

In a letter to registered providers, MacGregor said: “When we talk with tenants, they tell us that getting repairs services right and fixing problems that tenants identify is also of fundamental importance to them.

“It’s vitally important that your tenants know how to report repairs, have a range of ways to access your services, and that they have confidence that when they do so, you will take appropriate and effective action.

“Without that confidence, people are more likely to feel the need to circumvent existing systems, which can be inefficient for everyone involved. It is the job of landlords to get this right.”

“The notion that the sector cannot deliver on building safety and stock improvement as well as delivering new supply appears to be an overly stark dilemma”

And while investment has been steady on repairs, as highlighted earlier, many are calling for grant funding from government to come with the new Decent Homes Standard. Currently under review, Decent Homes looks at a range of issues, including decarbonisation.

And it’ll be this money that’s needed to fix the homes some social landlords say are too expensive to maintain and need to be demolished and rebuilt. Cases such as the Eastfields Estate, which was heavily featured in the ITV News investigation, are the product of this thinking from boards.

But will new money come with it? And what if it doesn’t? After the first phase of the review, the government concluded that the current standard was “suitable”. Wholesale changes some hoped for may not be forthcoming.

And while it could be argued that repairs and maintenance wasn’t top of the agenda while there was a government drive towards new supply, that’s certainly changed now.

Elly Hoult, Group Director of Assets and Sustainability at Notting Hill Genesis, outlines where she sees the issues: “As a sector we are facing some of the biggest challenges of our time, be that the need to invest more in our existing homes, delivering value for money, or understanding and making long-term decisions to deliver the sustainability agenda.

“Underpinning this is the constraint of an immature and insufficient supply chain and a lack of skilled labour. As well as poor data and a lack of investment in technology.

“At Notting Hill Genesis, we’re investing heavily in improving our homes to a higher standard as well as investing in improving the data that underpins our decision-making to ensure we maximise our resources and deliver high-quality homes to our residents.”

But housing providers know that it’s not just a case of looking externally. There are plenty of issues to be tackled internally too.

“When we talk with tenants, they tell us that getting repairs services right and fixing problems that tenants identify is also of fundamental importance to them”

We hear plenty about operatives not being well briefed and therefore turning up unprepared, call centre staff not being empowered enough to make decisions and find solutions, and easy repairs wasting operatives’ time.

Many housing providers are now starting to turn to technology to help with the first and last issue in that list, giving operatives a chance to video call the user so they can see the repair that’s needed before they go out. Additionally,  photos and videos can now be sent to operatives via an app to ensure the correct parts are brought with them to a job.

One solution by GreenSquareAccord has seen the introduction of smart collection points. In partnership with Jewson Partnership Solutions, the housing association (which itself has found issues with repairs after a merger) is giving operatives round-the-clock access to materials or tools they’ve ordered, whenever and wherever they need them, in secure containers.

The hope is that this reduces the need to go back to the warehouse, checking stock in local shops or travelling to hardware stores, resulting in repairs being achieved quicker.

Some providers are looking at technology to help them proactively spot repairs before they become an issue for residents. For example, smart boilers sending the organisation a message before they need a service. For legacy boilers and other repairs, the solution many are adopting is full stock condition surveys, so operatives and business plans are better placed to respond to the stock needs of the future.

Kate Lindley, Service Lead – Digital and Data at Socitm Advisory, explains why technology can be so important: “We hold so much data as a sector yet make use of only a tiny proportion of it, usually to manage risk rather than to optimise service and we need to make better use of all of this to truly shift the dial on how we operate, including making use of newer technologies like IoT and predictive repair capabilities, for example.   

“The better understanding we have of the data we hold, the more we can do with it and the bigger difference we can make.

“Embracing co-design and giving tenants a truly meaningful input in how services are delivered is also critical.

“Without that, all the technology in the world won’t make any difference.  This means actively listening – really listening – and involving tenants, shifting the balance of power in design from us to a collaborative approach.

“This is both a cultural and technological challenge and one that needs to be met by greater flexibility from system providers too.”

The other aspect many in housing are looking at is the overall quality of the job being done. Some accusations with repairs have been levelled at contractors, seemingly unaccountable to the housing provider or local authority that’s appointed them.

But Paul Maghie, National New Business Director, United Living Property Services, says landlords and contractors must work better together.

“Contractors have an important role to play in advising on a strategic approach to maintenance, and to help find efficiencies and innovative solutions.

“Ideally this will be part of a long-term plan involving capitalised repairs, which can be expensed over the lifetime of an asset.

“With costs increasing for a variety of reasons, it is all the more important that landlords and contractors work together to maintain high standards whatever challenges we face.”

“We hold so much data as a sector yet make use of only a tiny proportion of it, usually to manage risk rather than to optimise service and we need to make better use of all of this to truly shift the dial on how we operate, including making use of newer technologies like IoT and predictive repair capabilities”

The other route is by going inhouse. Later in this edition, we’ve a comment piece from Mark Earle, Head of In-House Maintenance Service at bpha. He says that bringing repairs inhouse “means that when our customers report a repair, it will be undertaken by a bpha colleague, who lives by our values, and puts customer satisfaction at the heart of everything they do”.

The hope is that this improves satisfaction ratings.

We’ve seen many failings within social housing recently around repairs. But they’re not issues that cannot be fixed. And what’s even better is that we know how to fix them. We know what residents want and what the regulator wants to see.

If the sector can make technological advances, empower its frontline staff, have detailed knowledge of the condition of its homes and engage proactively with residents, there’s no reason that the number of repairs complaints cannot reduce and the number of organisations finding themselves in difficult situations cannot also reduce.

Let’s get it done.

Providers’ spend on repairs and maintenance

Tenant Satisfaction Measures on repairs

HQN’s top tips

1. Know your stock — make sure your stock condition survey is thorough and up to date and get assurance from independent and professionally-qualified experts. Use the information to invest in it wisely
2. Know your residents — make sure vulnerable people aren’t living in poor conditions
3. Use the data you have for business planning and to drive improvements
4. Work out a fully-costed programme for bringing homes up to scratch, stress test your business plan. Take difficult decisions to sort problems out. Keep residents in the loop – secrecy isn’t your friend
5. You need experts: officers from Kensington and Chelsea told the Grenfell Inquiry they didn’t have access to high-calibre experts on fire safety – don’t repeat this mistake
6. Clarify roles and responsibilities — who does what and where accountability lies
7. Get on top of your procurement and contract management — engage with contractors (shared values, hold to account)
8. Co-design your repairs service with tenants and involve contractors and other suppliers when collaborating
9. Get your own ‘Kwajo’ to act as a tenant champion for repair issues. Empower your scrutiny panel to become more proactive and visit residents’ homes
10. Make booking a repair as easy as possible, at a time that suits the resident and do your best to get it right first time
11. Make better use of new technology such as home sensors to switch from responsive to predictive repairs where possible and keep track of developments
12. Listen to the frontline: the call centre and operatives know where the problems lie – talk to them
13. Clarify expectations — set the standards and KPIs, understand the customer journey and set out what good looks like
14. Communication is key — be as honest and transparent as possible with residents. Tenants should expect a seamless service so effective communication between departments and access to the right information is essential
15. Join HQN’s Asset Management Network — take advantage of peer-to-peer support, expert guidance and all the latest resources