The Housing Ombudsman will publish its first Good Practice guidance later this year, focusing on managing relations between landlords and residents.
The body says the guide, good practice, a power handed to it by the Social Housing (Regulation) Act introduced in July 2023, “will provide examples of where landlords have got things right”.
It adds the document “will establish a framework to help landlords problem solve in a challenging area that can regularly result in complaints.
“It will also share practical lessons and aim to reduce the need for residents to raise a complaint or refer their case to the Ombudsman.”
The guide comes after a consultation with 163 landlords, residents, and other key stakeholders. The body has yet to set a date for the release of the document.
Housing Ombudsman Richard Blakeway says: “Good practice will be a valuable tool for landlords to test approaches and improve using the insights of complaints.
“As with all learning from complaints, the right culture and behaviours will produce the greatest benefits rather than a tick-box exercise.
He adds: “This guidance will share the good we see in our casework which can sometimes be overshadowed by examples of where things have gone wrong.
“We will highlight approaches where landlords have delivered person-centred services rather than follow ‘copy and paste’ policies, which can often fail in the current and complex operating environment.”
