The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has identified serious failings following inspections at Newcastle and Nottingham city councils.

Following the Social Housing Regulation Act (2023), the regulator introduced new consumer standards for social housing landlords and began a new inspections regime.

In inspections last year, Newcastle and Nottingham received a C3 grading, highlighting ‘serious failings’ and the need for ‘significant’ improvement.

Newcastle City Council referred itself to the regulator three times in 2024. Social housing in Newcastle was transferred back to the council last July after its wholly owned housing company was decommissioned.

An RSH inspection in October discovered more than 1,800 overdue repairs cases, with more than 1,000 involving damp and mould, and more than 850 fire safety remedial actions.

It also found that it had been over a decade since a stock condition survey had been completed.

Newcastle’s director of housing and communities, Vicky McDermott, said the regulator’s findings were ‘extremely disappointing’ but expected.

She said improvements had been made, including bringing all housing services together in a new directorate; commissioning a stock condition survey; and new ‘Getting to Know You’ visits to council properties.

The RSH’s inspection of Nottingham City Council found almost 1,000 live disrepair cases, and that almost 40% of the authority’s homes had not been surveyed for more than ten years.

The council’s executive member for housing and planning, Jay Hayes, said the authority had been aware it needed to improve housing services after they were transferred back from an arms-length management company in 2023.

He said the council was inspecting all its homes over the next 18 months, employing more skilled tradespeople to tackle outstanding repairs, and developing service standards so residents could hold the authority to account.