Episode 163 - Awaab's Law (part of Social Housing Regulation Act 2023)

This week we will be talking about Awaab’s Law part of the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023. This episode content meets PC3 - Legal Framework & Processes of the Part 3 Criteria.

Resources from today's episode:

• https://www.gov.uk/government/news/awaabs-law-to-force-landlords-to-fix-dangerous-homes
• https://www.ribaj.com/intelligence/intelligence-why-are-more-homes-in-the-uk-reporting-damp-and-how-can-architects-help

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Transcript

Episode 163:

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I am your host Maria Skoutari and this week we will be talking about Awaab’s Law part of the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023. Todays episode meets PC3 of the Part 3 Criteria.

In July 2023, the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023 became law bringing forward positive change and transformation within the social housing sector by strengthening tenants rights and ensuring they live in safe, good quality homes devoid of healths risks posed by building hazards. 

As part of this new legislation, Awaab’s Law forms part of it and will come into force as of October 2025 with a phased implementation process whereby:  

• From October 2025, social landlords will be legally required to address damp and mould hazards within fixed timescales and address all emergency repairs within 24 hours, whether they relate to damp and mould or any other hazards. Repairs for significant hazards must begin within 7 calendar days and all repairs must be completed within a reasonable timeframe. 
• In 2026, the requirements will expand to apply to a wider range of Housing Health and Safety Rating System hazards beyond damp and mould. These additional hazards include: excess cold and excess heat, falls, structural collapse, fire, electrical and explosions, and hygiene hazards. 
• In 2027, this will extend further to apply to all Housing Health and Safety Rating System hazards excluding overcrowding. The Housing Health and Safety Rating System operates by evaluating the potential risk of harm to an actual or potential occupier, and is based on the risk to a particular age group over another, and is a means of rating the danger posed by a health and safety hazard.

Landlords who fail to comply face being taken to court, be fined or face other penalties, with social tenants able to use the full powers of the law to hold them to account. The Act also makes provision for requiring the landlord to provide safe alternative accommodation for the tenant, at no cost to them if repairs can’t be completed within the required timeframes.

The inclusion of Awaab’s Law within the Act places a spotlight on the severity of damp and mould as a hazard in social housing and highlights the government’s commitment to taking tenants’ health and safety seriously. This reinforces the obligations placed on all landlords in the Housing Act 2004 to ensure properties are free from serious hazards, as assessed through the Housing Health and Safety Rating System. 

In preparation for the implementation of Awaab’s Law, social landlords must continue to fix dangerous issues in their homes before the Law is fully implemented. They already have a duty to keep their homes fit for human habitation and to remedy disrepair, and they must also ensure that their homes meets the Decent Homes Standard. Awaab’s Law will set clearer and stronger laws to ensure that tenants are living in safe homes.

As a quick overview, the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023:

Is a major piece of UK legislation designed to overhaul the regulation of social housing in England and Wales. It was introduced in response to high-profile tragedies such as the Grenfell Tower fire and the death of Awaab Ishak, both of which highlighted serious failings in the sector. The Act has three core aims:

• Establish a new, proactive consumer regulation regime for social housing, focusing on tenant safety, transparency, and engagement. As such, the Act embeds new rights for tenants, including access to information about their landlord’s performance and management of their homes. Social landlords must inform tenants about how to make complaints and respond to hazards such as damp and mould within strict timeframes (known as "Awaab’s Law”).
• Refine the existing economic regulatory regime to ensure providers are well-governed and financially viable. Social housing managers are now required to hold specific housing management qualifications to ensure professionalism and competence in the sector.
• Strengthen the enforcement powers of the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) to hold landlords accountable and issue unlimited fines for non-compliance, including to local authorities. The regulator can also require landlords to implement performance improvement plans and, if necessary, arrange emergency repairs at the landlord’s expense.

The Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 marks a new era for social housing in England and Wales, prioritising tenant safety, landlord accountability, and sector professionalism.

Now rewinding back, what is Awaab’s Law and why was it brought into force:

Section 42 of the Act will amend the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 to require the government to make regulations which will require hazards in social housing to be remedied, this has become known as Awaab’s Law. This amendment to housing law was proposed in honour of the tragic death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak in December 2020. Awaab suffered respiratory issues caused by prolonged exposure to black mould in his home. The family reported the mould as a severe health risk to their social housing provider who failed to deal with the issues and root cause of the mould, and they and campaigners highlighted the injustice that social housing tenants can face and the necessity for legal provisions to be implemented.  

In 2023, the Awaab's Law petition gained over 177,000 signatures to make the law a reality and as a result the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, announced the government’s intention to implement the legislation at the beginning of 2024. This landmark law will be the most significant change to how the sector operates in the past decade, as the first piece of legislation to introduce timescales that hazards must be addressed within and is an important step towards protecting tenants and preventing other tragedies from happening in the future. The vital reforms will help drive a transformational and lasting change in the safety and quality of social housing, supporting the government’s pledge through the Plan for Change to deliver the biggest boost in social and affordable housing in a generation and build 1.5 million homes.

While Awaab’s Law seeks to improve only a specific area of the built environment, it draws attention to the importance of understanding causes of excessive levels of damp and mould, and provides an opportunity for architects to discuss ways to mitigate these problems in the design process.

So what will happen under the first phase from October 2025:

In the coming months the government will bring forward further reforms designed to drive up standards across social housing and to build greater trust and transparency between landlords and tenants. It will:

• Introduce powers through the Renters’ Rights Bill to extend Awaab’s Law to the private rented sector. Thereafter, the government will consult on how to apply Awaab’s Law to privately rented homes in a way that works for the sector and is fair and proportionate for tenants and landlords.
• Consult on a new Decent Homes Standard and minimum energy efficiency standards, to ensure tenant’s homes are made safe, warm, and free from disrepair.
• Legislate to require social landlords to carry out electrical safety checks at least every five years, as well as mandatory appliance inspections on all electrical appliances that are provided by the landlord.

So in the first instance, when a hazard is reported by a tenant, landlords are required to investigate them within 14 calendar days and provide tenants with a written report detailing findings, next steps and timelines for repair.

As mentioned, the law initially applied to social landlords from July 2024 but with the introduction of the Renters Rights Bill this will extend to private rented sector as well. Applying Awaab's Law to temporary accommodation is also being consulted on to achieve the best outcomes. 

Why is this phenomenon increasing with dwellings getting damper:

Research showed that damp and mould affects 26% of rented homes in the UK and that 3.5 million households (14%) in England lived in a home that failed to meet the Decent Homes Standard, 2.1 million households (9%) lived in a home with at least one Category 1 hazard, and 1.0 million households (4%) lived in a home with damp.

There are lots of factors combining to exacerbate problems of damp. Living habits have changed over recent decades whereby family members might now have multiple showers during the week or even in a single day, people often dry clothes on radiators instead of an external washing line, and kitchens are seeing rising moisture levels from dishwashers, washing machines, microwaves and much more, with the key issue being that kitchen ventilation is generally reliant on the switching on of the cooker hood. More people working from home is also a contributing factor.

How can architects assist to tackle rising dampness:

The best solution for tackling mould and dampness is specify a mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) system. Their only downside is that they can be bulky, require a lot of pipework and are often not practical for an existing building, if its a retrofit project. It is therefore generally recommended to use continuous extract fans and trickle vents, unless faced with heritage windows that even when draft-proofed will be leaky enough to serve as trickle vents. 

With a conversion of an existing building it is best to plan it so that a centralised continuous extract fan can be ran even from planning stage particularly if it is a heritage building so that all the ventilation is coming to that central point. It will run on background trickle rate and then as soon as the humidistat senses a higher humidity level it will go into boost mode. This way, you only have a single outlet that avoids an elevation being peppered with outlets, which is particularly important if you are in a sensitive area. The fan can be placed in a remote area so it doesn’t impact internal noise levels. 

Considering ventilation strategies early on will help tackle all common issues which occur later in the design process allowing for the provision of suitable plant space, ceiling depth for the ductwork and location of the unit itself taking into consideration noise and optimum ducting layout. 

To sum up what I discussed today:

• Awaab’s Law, part of the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023, will be coming into force in October 2025
• From October 2025, social landlords will be legally required to address damp and mould hazards within fixed timescales and address all emergency repairs within 24 hours and repairs for significant hazards must begin within 7 calendar days. 
• In 2026, the requirements will expand to apply to a wider range of Housing Health and Safety Rating System hazards beyond damp and mould. These additional hazards include: excess cold and excess heat, falls, structural collapse, fire, electrical and explosions, and hygiene hazards. 
• In 2027, this will extend further to apply to all Housing Health and Safety Rating System hazards excluding overcrowding. 
• Landlords who fail to comply can face fines, legal action, and must provide safe alternative accommodation if repairs aren't completed on time.
• The law will extend to the private rental sector via the upcoming Renters' Rights Bill, increasing accountability across the housing market.
• The aim of this law is that it is the first piece of legislation to introduce timescales that hazards must be addressed within and is an important step towards protecting tenants and preventing other tragedies from happening in the future.