The Scottish Housing Regulator today announced a programme of visits to social landlords to discuss their Annual Assurance Statement.
Each year by 31 October every social landlord must prepare and publish an Annual Assurance Statement which confirms whether it meets Regulatory Standards and Requirements.
The Regulator will visit 13 landlords to understand their approach to preparing their Statement and how they have assured themselves about compliance with Regulatory Requirements and Standards. The visits will have a particular focus on how the landlords have assured themselves about compliance with their tenant and resident safety duties and for RSLs will also focus on their approach to financial planning and the assumptions which underpin their financial plans.
Helen Shaw, Director of Regulation said: ‘“The Statements are a way for governing bodies and committees to assure themselves and their tenants and service users that they comply with Regulatory Requirements and Standards, or to disclose where they need to improve.
“This is our third programme of visits to landlords about the Statements. This year we asked the sector to provide specific assurance in the Annual Assurance Statements about their compliance with their obligations in relation to tenant and resident safety. So during the visits we’ll gather further information about how landlords have assured themselves about this important area. We will publish a report later this year on the findings to share lessons learned with all social landlords.”
Notes to editors
- The Scottish Housing Regulator was established on 1 April 2011 under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2010. Its objective is to safeguard and promote the interests of tenants and others who use local authority and RSL housing services. The Regulator operates independently of Scottish Ministers and is accountable directly to the Scottish Parliament. It assumed its full regulatory responsibilities on 1 April 2012. The Regulator consists of the Chair and seven Board members. More information about the Regulator can be found on its website at housingregulator.gov.scot
- SHR sets out how it regulates social landlords in its published framework – Regulation of Social Housing in Scotland.