In our latest SfH podcast, Piers Williamson, Chair of Sustainability for Housing, is joined by the Chief of Regulatory Engagement at the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH), Kate Dodsworth.

Kate leads the Regulatory Engagement Directorate, guaranteeing the delivery of effective regulation that achieves statutory objectives. She also delivers frontline planned and reactive regulation, ensuring that registered providers are financially viable, well governed and meet RSH consumer standards.

During this episode, Piers and Kate explore the most important outcomes for consumer regulation, how communication is the foundation of relationships, the progress and persistent blockers within the sector and how to use data effectively.

Below are some of the key takeaways…

The most important outcomes for consumer regulation

When reflecting on what good consumer regulation looks like, Kate said: “[It] looks like tenants living in good quality homes that are safe, enjoying good landlord services with a relationship that’s underpinned by trust, respect and transparency.”

She emphasised the importance of accountability, especially at the board and leadership level, noting that the regulator looks at the organisations from a top-down approach.

Kate further explained that there is a focus on tangible outcomes like safety, quality of homes and meaningful tenant engagement that leads to real improvement rather than a “nice to have glossy strategy.”

Building relationships through communication

Kate stressed that tenants were the largest stakeholder group that responded to consultations, highlighting that the demand is there to communicate effectively with them. She coined this the “boring brilliance of housing” – simple, clear communication makes a huge difference in shaping the tenant-landlord relationship.

She noted: “If you’re trying to drive improvements, make sure that you’ve got those bases covered and make sure that your tenants understand what you are trying to do. Communication is an absolute bedrock of that.”

Progress and persistent blockers within the sector

Since the Grenfell tragedy and Covid-19, the sector has made some progress in meeting consumer standards. Kate said: “Understanding the condition of your stock of homes is a really important thing to do, and I think we can see evidence of that improving.”

Although there is improvement in the quality of homes, Kate noted that this varies across different landlords, organisations and local authorities. There are gaps in health and safety compliance, repair services and tenant insight – data underpins all these areas.

How to use data effectively

Having worked in the social housing sector, Kate observed a tendency of optimism bias in regard to data. Solely data will not solve an issue, Kate noted: “It’s about how you interrogate the data and use it as an extra source of intelligence and help you on your journey.”

When it comes to best practices of using data, Kate explained how landlords should look at it through different lenses, like diversity and geography, then identify where the pinch points are and focus resources in those areas.

To find out more, listen to the podcast here