14 April 2006
The Housing Corporation and other regulators should reduce pressure on social landlords by synchronising their work and sharing information, according to an independent review.
The review, set up by the corporation last year and chaired by Sir Les Elton, calls for a cut in the red tape facing housing associations and for the corporation to adopt a 'one-in, one-out' approach to new regulatory requirements.
Inspections by the Audit Commission should be less frequent and should focus on services identified as priorities by residents. They must also take into account the breadth of an individual association's business, says the report, published on April 11.
The Elton inquiry follows an end-to-end review of the Housing Corporation two years ago by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and a separate inquiry by the House of Commons' ODPM select committee.
The latest review, which focused solely on regulation, included representatives from the Audit Commission, the National Housing Federation, the Better Regulation Commission and the Council of Mortgage Lenders.
It concludes that the Housing Corporation should remain principal regulator of registered social landlords and sign bilateral agreements with other bodies. It also calls for a review of the regulation facing RSLs that receive development grants to strike the right balance between protecting public money and promoting efficiency.
Elton, the former chief executive of Gateshead Metropolitan Borough Council, said it was important to 'minimise friction' and allow top-performing housing associations to be innovative and improve. His report makes more than 80 recommendations.
Peter Dixon, the corporation's chair, promised a plan within a month but pointed out it had already simplified data returns and reduced regulation for smaller associations.
'We have not been sitting on our hands,' he said. 'For many of the recommendations – particularly those on simplifying data returns, where we need to put out advice in time to catch the next annual round – we are on the case already.'
PFapr2006
