16 January 2004
The National Housing Federation has delivered a 'hands off' warning to the Audit Commission over its increasingly broad inspections of housing associations.
The NHF's response to the commission's three-year strategic plan stresses that inspectors must appreciate that registered social landlords are independent organisations that provide private as well as public services. 'There should be no duplication of roles with the current regulator,' it says.
Inspections by the commission are becoming too complex and risk increasing the regulatory burden on landlords, the NHF maintains. Instead of just inspecting RSLs, the commission appears to want to check up on financial and governance issues that are regulated by the Housing Corporation, the federation claims.
A star rating system, proposed by the commission last month, is unlikely to reflect the diverse work carried out by housing associations across the country, the federation adds.
The Audit Commission began inspecting RSLs last April and expects to visit about 100 associations per year. Danny Friedman, NHF director of policy, said the waters between the responsibilities of the commission and the corporation were becoming increasingly muddied.
The commission was familiar with inspecting public sector services. 'I believe we are the only bodies that are "third way" and include large elements of private sector work,' he added.
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