Improving our housing service
We're making improvements to our Housing service in response to the Regulator of Social Housing’s judgement on Wandsworth Council. You can find out more about how residents are making a difference through our Housing Improvement and Transformation Board.
On this page are the 32 actions we are undertaking. To find out the latest, see progress on the Housing Improvement and Transformation Plan.
Contents:
- Meeting the Safety and Quality Standard
- Meeting the Transparency, Influence and Accountability standard
- Transforming housing services
Meeting the Safety and Quality Standard
This standard from the Regulator of Social Housing sets out what landlords must do to ensure the quality and safety of tenants’ homes. You can read a copy of the standard.
Fire safety
Ensuring our properties are safe in the event of a fire is extremely important. We need to undertake regular safety inspections and carry out any recommendations from those inspections promptly. Find out more about fire safety in our homes.
Action 1: Reduce outstanding FRA actions
Fire Risk Assessments are done annually for each of our buildings. The purpose of the assessment is to evaluate the risk to people from fire, taking into account existing fire safety measures, and to determine whether additional measures are needed. This action is to ensure that we complete the recommendations of those reports in a timely manner.
Status: In progress
Action 2: Complete the catch-up programme of front door inspections
All front doors of individual properties in our blocks must meet fire safety standards. Flat entrance doors form part of the protection to the common escape route so these are included in the fire risk assessment. This action is to ensure that the backlog of these inspections is completed.
Status: In progress
Action 3: Develop an annual programme for future years’ front door inspections
Historically Wandsworth hasn’t always been able to complete all of these checks each year. This action is to ensure that we will be able to do so in the future by providing the necessary resources.
Status: In progress
Health and safety
The Housing department must carry out all the required safety checks in our tenant’s homes and blocks. We then need to make sure we resolve any problems those checks find quickly. Find out more about safety in the home.
Action 4: Complete the catch-up programme for domestic EICRs
All tenant’s homes should be checked to ensure the electrical systems such as sockets and fuse boards are safe and given an electrical safety certificate (called an EICR). These checks are required every five years. This action is to catch up on the backlog of these checks.
Status: In progress
Action 5: Complete the catch-up programme for communal EICRs
All communal areas in our blocks should be checked to ensure the electrical systems such as sockets and fuse boards are safe and given an electrical safety certificate (called an EICR). These checks are required every five years. This action is to catch up on the backlog of these checks.
Status: In progress
Action 6: Develop a five-year programme for domestic and communal EICRs
Historically Wandsworth hasn’t been able to complete all the EICR checks every five years. This action is to ensure the team is resourced to do so in the future.
Status: In progress
Action 7: Achieve full compliance with smoke alarm/detectors installations
All of our tenanted properties must have a smoke alarm in. This action is to ensure we install them in all our properties and have a policy regarding properties where tenants don’t allow us access.
Status: In progress
Action 8: Commission third party audit of health and safety functions
In order to keep residents safe, we need to know key information about their properties. This action is to ask an external body to review how we collect, store and use this information to find ways to improve.
Status: In progress
Action 9: Implement the findings of health and safety audit
This action is to follow the recommendations created by the audit in action 8.
Status: In progress
Action 10: Create Compliance Team
Previously key health and safety information, inspections and monitoring was carried out by several different parts of the housing department. This action is to create one team who will look after this.
Status: In progress
Damp and mould
It is important that damp and mould issues are dealt with quickly by the housing department. Find out more about damp and mould in council homes.
Action 11: Provide assurance to Councillors regarding damp and mould reporting
Councillors want to oversee the Housing department’s performance in tackling damp and mould in tenant’s properties, in compliance with Awaab’s Law. To do so the Housing department will produce a way for them to track cases and overall performance.
Status: In progress
Stock quality
To effectively plan maintenance and refurbishment works, we need to know about the condition of our properties. Historically we examined a small number of properties to gather evidence, this is no longer sufficient.
Going forward we need to carry out more inspections of tenanted homes and blocks, so we have a better understanding of the condition of our housing stock. Find out more about Stock Condition Surveys.
Action 12: Complete programme of stock condition surveys by end of 2026
All tenant’s homes and blocks should be inspected in 2026 to give us and full and up to date picture of the conditions of our buildings. This action is to complete those surveys.
Status: In progress
Action 13: Develop a rolling programme of stock condition surveys
Going forward we will check 20% of our tenanted homes and blocks each year. Meaning we inspect them all within a five-year period. This action is to develop that rolling programme.
Status: In progress
Capital programming
From time to time we have to carry out major works to our properties to keep them in a good state of repair. Major works are normally large projects designed to prolong the life of our housing stock. These include schemes such as external decorations or roof, window and lift renewals.
These works are funded and managed by the capital programme, and leaseholders are charged for a share of the works. Find out more about major works to council properties.
Action 14: Develop a new Asset Management Strategy built upon stock condition data and current industry practice on asset investment
The new stock condition surveys (see action 12) will provide a large amount of new data. This information needs to be reviewed to help plan major works, following best practice from the housing industry. This action is to create a plan that sets out how this will be done.
Status: In progress
Action 15: Develop a new five-year capital investment plan
This action is to use that strategy from action 14 to plan the next five years of works.
Status: In progress
Action 16: Through robust procurement, appoint strategic capital programme delivery contractors
In order to deliver the works identified in action 15 we will need to tender for contractors to undertake some of the works. This action is to bundle the tendering for multiple pieces of work to deliver better value for money for residents, rather than tender each piece of work individually.
Status: In progress
Repairs
Find out more about how to raise a repair.
Action 17: Achieve 'business as usual target' for repairs orders over target
Each repair is classified as emergency, urgent or non-urgent and each category has a target time for repair once it has been reported. This action is for us to reduce the number of repairs that take longer than planned to under 1% of repairs by the end of March 2027.
Status: In progress
Action 18: Complete Delivery Unit review of repairs service
This action is to have a review of the repairs service undertaken by another part of the Council. This review will look at ways we can improve the repairs service to deliver a better experience for residents and to be more efficient. This review has been completed.
Status: Completed
Action 19: Implement recommendations from repairs review
This action is to follow the recommendations from the report from action 18.
Status: In progress
Meeting the Transparency, Influence and Accountability standard
This standard from the Regulator of Social Housing sets out what landlords must do about being open with tenants and treating them with fairness and respect so that tenants can access services, raise complaints, influence decision making and hold their landlord to account. You can read a copy of the standard.
Complaints
It is important that the Housing department deals with complaints promptly and takes action to resolve the issue at the earliest opportunity. Find out how to raise a complaint.
Action 20: Improve complaints handling that includes response times, learning from maladministration and reduced maladministration rates
This action is to ensure complaints are responded to within the agreed timescales. It also means the Housing department must learn from problems with complaints and improve the number of complaints where the issue is resolved earlier and reduce the number of complaints where residents escalate their complaint.
Status: In progress
Transparency
Making information accessible on the Housing department’s performance, rights of tenants, and how residents can hold us to account. Find out more about Housing performance.
Action 21: Increase opportunities for senior management and councillors to review performance information
We have implemented new ways for Councillors to scrutinise the Housing department’s performance. New ways of reporting and management within the Housing department. This action has been completed.
Status: Completed
Action 22: Communicate to tenants the outcomes of the regulatory inspection
This action is to ensure that tenants are informed about the outcomes of the regulatory inspection and what the Housing department is doing to improve. This includes this web page. This action has been completed.
Status: Completed
Resident engagement
Wandsworth Housing department must take tenants’ views into account in our decision making about how landlord services are delivered and communicate how tenants’ views have been considered.
Find out more about resident engagement.
Action 23: Establish two focus groups with residents who have taken part in the Perception Survey and from the Participation Register
We spoke to groups of residents about their experiences of engaging with the Housing department. This action has been completed.
Status: Completed
Action 24: Commission third party review of resident engagement
We commissioned Housing Quality Network (HQN) to undertake an independent review of tenant engagement. This review has now concluded, and you can view the published Resident engagement review. It assesses how we listen to, involve and respond to residents, and identifies a number of areas where further improvement is needed.
Status: In progress
Action 25: Implement findings from review of resident engagement
This action is to implement the recommendations from the review in action 24. These include ensuring that opportunities to take part are open to all residents, strengthening tenant-led engagement, and making sure the resident voice is clearly heard in decision-making and governance.
Status: In progress
Vulnerable residents
Wandsworth Housing department must ensure that the needs of vulnerable residents are considered, and that services adapt to individuals’ needs. Find out more about services to help residents live independently.
Action 26: Conclude Phase Two of vulnerabilities work
The Housing department is undertaking work to better understand the needs of our tenants. This includes training for staff.
Status: Completed
Transforming housing services
These actions are designed to improve the Housing department and the internal structure to support delivering a better service.
Structure and services
We commissioned Ark Consultancy to carry out a full review of the Housing service structure.
This review is examining whether our current set-up is the right one to deliver safe, high-quality services for residents and to meet our regulatory requirements. It is considering how teams are organised, where responsibilities sit, and how we can improve accountability and performance across the service.
The findings will inform future changes to how the department is structured so that we are better equipped to deliver consistent, high-quality services.
Action 27: Communicate to staff the outcomes of the regulatory inspection
This action is to ensure staff from across the Housing department are aware of the results of the regulatory inspection and the department’s priorities.
Status: Completed
Action 28: Restructure senior management to two director roles
This action is to ensure greater ownership of services to tenants focusing all activities under the Director of Housing Management.
Status: Completed
Action 29: Appoint new senior management to lead the response to the regulatory inspection
This action is to ensure that a senior member of the housing department is responsible for ensuring the response is coordinated and implemented.
Status: Completed
Action 30: Review of Business Support and Finance functions
This action is to review the responsibilities and organisation of these two parts of the Housing department that includes complaint handling.
Status: In progress
Action 31: Restructure of Housing
Based on the reports changes will be made to the structure of the Housing department to deliver improved results for tenants.
Status: In progress
Technology
The Housing department is heavily reliant on telephone reporting of repairs. There is also the opportunity for new systems to improve efficiency.
Action 32: Review and improve the use of data and technology to inform services to tenants
This action is to explore options for improving opportunities for tenants to provide information to us. It also considers how we use the data we have to deliver better results.
Status: In progress