Housing Ombudsman launches spotlight report on attitudes, rights and respect

The Housing Ombudsman has published its latest spotlight report on attitudes, rights and respect. The report explores issues around resident engagement in social housing, and makes recommendations for the sector. 

The report follows a call for evidence aiming to explore issues around resident engagement in social housing, including barriers to effective communication, advocacy services and residents’ experiences of requesting reasonable adjustments. It also outlines key data and insights from the Housing Ombudsman’s case work and sets out recommendations for landlords and policy makers.  
 
The Housing Ombudsman’s findings show the importance of a human approach to resident services and communication to build positive relationships between housing professionals and residents. 

What recommendations does the report make? 

The report calls for social landlords to focus on individuals and their specific circumstances, whilst being more flexible and agile, to better meet the needs of residents.  

It outlines recommendations for social landlords, including:  

• To review mission statements to ensure they reflect current and future services.  
• To put resident needs at the heart of policies, including vulnerability policies, in line with current best practice.  
• To conduct a forecast of the future to identify any gaps in services for residents into the future. 
• To raise awareness of the complaints procedure and make sure it’s accessible for residents who may face barriers.   

The report recognises the challenging landscape social landlords are facing now, which is creating barriers to effective complaint handling for residents.

It also sets out recommendations for government and policy makers, including: 

• Creating a new Royal Commission on housing, aiming to recognise housing policy as a health intervention. 
• Proposing a long-term strategy for social housing.  

If you have any questions or would like to share your views on the report, please get in touch with our policy team using the contact details below.