The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has published a Regulatory Notice (RN) for Swan Housing Association.
Swan is currently non-compliant with the RSH’s Governance and Financial Viability Standard and consequently is subject to intensive regulatory engagement. Through that engagement the RSH identified concerns relating to outstanding fire risk assessments and remedial actions. Swan had commissioned a third party to conduct a review of its health and safety compliance, following which it made a self-referral to the RSH.
The RSH has concluded that Swan has failed to meet statutory health and safety requirements in relation to:
- Fire safety – at the point of the self-referral Swan had almost 1,500 remedial actions overdue from fire risk assessments, more than half of which were high or medium risk actions. At the end of April 2022, over 650 high and medium risk actions remained overdue
- Asbestos management – more than half of Swan’s communal areas did not have an asbestos management survey in place. In addition Swan was not following guidance for an annual review of areas where asbestos was present, instead it was carrying out reviews only every five years and
- Water safety – Swan did not hold evidence that recommendations from water safety risk assessments had been completed.
The RSH found Swan to be in breach of the Home Standard and that as a consequence there was the potential for serious detriment to tenants.
All of the RJs, RNs and GUR listings published by the RSH can be viewed on the RSH’s website here.