The housing ombudsman in England is calling for an independent royal commission “to reimagine the future of social housing” and re-establish the link between housing and health.
Richard Blakeway, who handles thousands of tenants’ complaints about mistreatment, disrepair, discrimination and squalor, said that parts of the social housing sector had reached breaking point, with residents desperate and neglected.
“The system in some areas is really close to being overwhelmed,” he told the Guardian. “The scale of the challenge hasn’t been grasped.”
About 4 million households live in social housing in England, but 380,000 households are in homes classed as “non decent” by the government. About 88,000 households are believed by the regulator of social housing to be living with serious damp and mould problems, which can, at worst, cause serious illness and death.
Blakeway, a former Conservative deputy mayor of London under Boris Johnson, has been in post for more than four years, during which time public outrage erupted over the death from mould of two-year-old Awwab Ishak in social housing in Rochdale.
He said a dramatic growth in casework had “turned the ombudsman into something like an emergency service”.
Blakeway said there had been “neglect in policy [and] in the way some residents have been treated, marginalised and stigmatised by the people that are there to help them”. In a 70-page report, he called for a royal commission to present “a single view of welfare, health and housing spend”.
His intervention came as social housing tenants brace for rent rises of up to 7.7% in April, after they were capped at 7% in 2023. The Social Housing Action Campaign (Shac) group said it was forcing some families “in despair” and cutting back on heating and food.
Some tenants were even quitting their properties and sofa-surfing instead, said Suzanne Muna, the secretary of Shac.
“We agree with what he is saying that the whole system needs to be looked at,” she said, citing in particular the “power imbalance between tenants and landlords … that needs to be addressed”.
On Monday, Mansfield district council announced it had launched inspections of 64 council homes after the death of one of its tenants, Jane Bennett, 52, from lung disease that may have been caused by mould.
Bennett was diagnosed with interstitial pneumonitis in April 2023 and was twice admitted to intensive care, but died in June despite treatment with high-flow nasal oxygen, intravenous steroids, and antifungals. A pathologist and respiratory consultant were “clear that the mould may be causal or contributory to her death”, found Neena Sharma, the coroner. She warned of a risk of future deaths unless Mansfield council took action. It confirmed on Monday it had found mould in Bennett’s bedroom drawers and wardrobes but said it made repairs, took “a zero-tolerance approach” to the fungus and maintained the home to a “good standard”.
The last royal commission on “housing of the working classes” was set up in 1884, in which a panel of politicians, trade unionists, business people, bishops and Charles, the then prince of Wales, investigated urban and rural slums. It paved the way for mass social housing in Britain and laws making landlords personally liable for tenants’ health.
Blakeway wants a new royal commission “independent of government and unimpeded by politics” to “re-establish housing policy as a health intervention” and create a new long-term plan.
“It’s not one policy, one landlord or one government [that is to blame for the sector’s problems],” he said. “It’s a cumulative impact of poor choices.”
His intervention is likely to be seen as an implicit criticism of the Conservatives’ record on social housing over close to 14 years in office. His officials have made 14,000 orders and recommendations to social landlords to make things right for tenants since April 2023.
“The effect of a combined cost of living and housing crisis has put parts of the sector at breaking point, compounded by a narrow vision of what social housing is for; one which is far removed from its conception,” Blakeway said.
Royal commissions were common in the decades after the second world war, but have had a mixed impact, according to the Institute for Government thinktank. The 1977 royal commission on criminal procedures influenced the creation of an independent Crown Prosecution Service, but the 1999 commission on House of Lords reform did not deliver change.
Social housing tenants are still waiting for the government to deliver on a promise to enforce the so-called Awaab’s law. The two-year-old died in December 2020 but an eight-week consultation was launched only recently.
Housing associations say 63% was cut from their government funding in 2010 and since then construction of new homes has fallen while rising demand has been fuelled by record private rent increases.
According to the latest English housing survey, 380,000 households live in social housing that is rated non-decent. Blakeway said the figures were “probably a gross underestimate”.
He said there was “an emphatic case for government action and resources to support social landlords” as the status quo was not sustainable.
Kate Henderson, the chief executive of the National Housing Federation, which represents social landlords, said it was pleased Blakeway had added his voice to growing calls on the government to invest in social housing.
“The system is under immense pressure,” she said. “We are calling for a long-term plan which delivers more social homes and provides funding for regeneration.”
The government said it was taking action to improve the quality of social housing and give tenants a proper voice, including through the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023.
A spokesperson for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said: “Tragic cases such as that of Awaab Ishak must never happen again. That’s why we’ve introduced Awaab’s law to force social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould within strict time frames. Landlords must consider the ombudsman’s report carefully and ensure they are taking the needs of vulnerable residents into account.”
• This article was amended on 24 January 2024. An earlier version said that the death of Jane Bennett from lung disease was “likely to” have been caused by mould; that should have said it may have have been caused by mould.
