The King’s Speech: raising standards for tenants in the private sector
Earlier this month, the King opened Parliament with his King’s Speech, after the latest general election saw the Labour party elected with a majority government.
His speech included comment on the Renters’ Rights Bill (which replaces the Conservatives’ Renters’ Reform Bill). The Bill which is still in its draft form and with no timeline for being introduced in England and parts of Wales, highlighted that, a minority of renters were being exploited by unscrupulous landlords. The draft bill aims to strengthen private renters’ rights across a range of issues, including applying Awaab’s Law to the sector.
This comes as earlier this week, the BBC reported that the proportion of private renters with children, who are living in damp homes has almost doubled since the pandemic. The percentage of households with dependent children in damp housing is at its highest in the private rental sector (14%), followed by Local authority (9%) and Housing association (6%) properties.
Steps we’ve taken to date
Earlier this year, we set out our support in principle for Awaab’s Law, as the health, safety and wellbeing of residents in their homes is paramount. In our consultation response, we highlighted the need for Awaab’s Law protections to be available to residents in the private sector. Our members have first-hand experience dealing with severe damp and mould problems, across all types of property, and have seen the impacts which living with this can have on householders.
This year's conference
During this year’s Property Care Conference (Wednesday 18 September), we are delighted that Nadhia Khan from Rochdale Boroughwide Housing will be presenting to share her experiences on the Awaab Ishak inquest, the lessons learnt and what has changed. This combined with sessions on other housing disrepair cases, indoor air quality and what competence looks like, will provide members with valuable insight into the support which local authorities, council, and now the private sector, need to keep their properties safe and healthy.
Moving forward
We will follow the progress of both the Renters’ Rights Bill and Awaab’s Law to ensure that damp and mould are dealt with by competent contractors who have the qualifications and experience set out in Understanding and addressing the health risks of damp and mould in the home. We know that our members’ services are in demand, and there is a risk that where mandatory timelines are too short, landlords will receive inadequate advice from unqualified surveyors and contractors, which could result in longer to redress the problem.