Three councils including City of London given failing grades by the Regulator of Social Housing

Three councils including the City of London Corporation have been given failing grades by the Regulator of Social Housing.

In a batch of regulatory judgements issued this morning, Runnymede Borough Council and Rugby Borough Council joined the City in its failure to meet the consumer standards.

The regulator (RSH) identified serious failings in the City, which self-referred prior to the inspection, delivering the outcomes of the safety and quality standard. The local authority was handed a C3 grading.

The RSH found large numbers of outstanding remedial actions arising from electrical safety checks, as well as more than 1,000 overdue fire safety actions, some of which were high risk and had been overdue for more than a year.

Roughly 18% of the corporation’s 1,600 homes do not meet the Decent Homes Standard and based on its current plans the standard will not be met for all homes until 2035.

The City said it accepted the grading and “recognised the extent of the work required”. It noted that it was investing more than £300m in its housing stock.

“We recognised that there were historic issues in our housing stock, which is why we agreed a multi-million-pound housing investment action plan in December,” said the City’s policy chairman Chris Hayward.

“The safety and comfort of our residents is an absolute priority, and our funding package marks a significant investment in ensuring they receive the high-quality housing they deserve. 

“I want to reassure residents just how seriously we take this and how dedicated we are to improving our performance for everyone who lives in our homes.”

Runnymede was given a C4 rating after self-referring in June 2025 having identified issues relating to rent setting. The RSH identified issues in other areas, discovering that the council had carried out surveys of 58% of its homes since 2021, but only 30% had a full stock condition survey.

It also highlighted inadequate monitoring and reporting of hazards in tenants’ homes, with almost 250 previously unknown hazards identified by the RSH, and found “no evidence” that Runnymede was checking the accuracy and integrity of data for required health and safety checks and actions.

“Although Runnymede BC indicated a willingness to address these very serious failings, RSH has not seen evidence that it fully understands the potential risks to tenants,” said the regulator.

The council has developed an improvement plan.

Mike Smith, chair of the Runnymede’s housing committee, said the regulator’s report “mirrors much of our own existing improvement plan” and noted that its whole stock survey was due to complete by the end of March and that it had agreed to take on more staff to support its team.

“A significant part of the judgement relates to rent, which was a historic item where we self-referred to the Regulator ahead of any knowledge of an impending inspection,” he said. “Having commissioned third party assurance, we identified those impacted by the issue and financially made good on that original error.”

Smith said Runnymede was committed to achieving full compliance with the Decent Homes Standard in the coming financial year and was ahead of target in delivering this.

Rugby was given a C3 rating. It also made a self-referral after a third-party assessment highlighted issues relating to the accuracy of repairs information.

The RSH found the council commissioned stock condition surveys for 86% of its homes but only holds partial data so cannot fully analyse the results.

The council also identified 800 homes with Electrical Installation Condition Reports over five years old and 600 homes without a smoke alarm.

Claire Edwards, Rugby’s portfolio holder for Communities, Homes, Safety, and Regulation, said: “When I became Portfolio Holder, it was clear that significant work was needed to ensure our housing services were operating at the standard our tenants deserve.

”Over the past 18 months we have invested in our services, strengthened engagement with tenants, and progressed major improvements to our repairs service.

“We welcome the Regulator’s assessment and see it as an important part of our improvement journey. We remain committed to investing in our workforce and systems, and to working closely with tenants as we continue to strengthen our housing services.”

Kate Dodsworth, Chief of Regulatory Engagement at RSH, said: “Our inspections continue to highlight significant gaps in some landlords’ understanding of tenants and their homes, reinforcing the need for accurate, up‑to‑date information to ensure safe, decent housing.

“We will continue to hold landlords to account, and drive continuous improvement, to ensure tenants live in good quality homes and receive effective services.”

Willow Tree Housing Partnership had its consumer grade upgraded from C3 to C2, which the regulator said was the first time such a housing association had made such a move.

Christian Action (Enfield) Housing Association was upgraded from G3 to G2 on governance and from V3 to V2 for financial viability.

The RSH published judgements relating to five other providers, which are summarised in the table below.

It also removed a regulatory notice for London Borough of Greenwich.