We’ve recently refreshed our website pages, and with that, we thought it was the perfect time to (re)introduce our regulatory team and the ways we support housing providers.

Our work is wide-ranging, covering everything from day-to-day compliance to urgent support when things go wrong. You’ll find a full list of our services here, but in this blog, we’re highlighting a few key areas where we regularly help clients.

Health and safety obligations in relation to employees, tenants, those to whom services are provided, contractors and the public.

We can help housing providers navigate their wide-ranging and often conflicting health and safety obligations. To give you examples, previously our advice has covered the installation and maintenance of window restrictors, obligations in respect of items gifted between tenants and the management of trees in back gardens and communal areas. 

Property compliance, including gas safety, electrical safety, water hygiene and Legionella, lifting equipment, asbestos and fire and building safety. 

Our advice typically covers complexities in property compliance and what providers should do if checks cannot be completed – our previous advice has covered everything from the legalities of gas capping and dealing with debt on the meter, to dealing with a tenant that kept a large number of reptiles in terrariums, overloading the electrical system.  

Our team regularly supports housing providers in navigating their fire and building safety obligations. Common challenges we support clients with include: the management of fire safety in supported living (including revising and updating service level agreements), and what to do where there are fire risk assessment actions outstanding. More in respect about Anthony Collins’ building safety team can be found here.

Handling complex complaints

We are seeing an increasing level of instructions in respect of complex safety-related complaints. We are able to support with identifying the scope of any investigation (including discussing the potential role of legal professional privilege), drafting clear complaint responses and advising on the potential risks for the organisation (including whether there is a need to report to the Regulator of Social Housing).

Requests for information, investigations and prosecutions conducted by the Police and regulators.

Our team is very experienced in supporting organisations being investigated by the Police and other regulators (including the Health and Safety Executive). Amongst other actions, we can support with corresponding with the Police or regulator, assist in collating responses to any questions and documentation, and make representations that a prosecution should not be commenced. If a prosecution is commenced, we can support providers in preparing for and attending any hearings. 

We have recently been supporting a number of providers in respect of HSE investigations relating to the control of vibration at work. See more here.

Requests for information from the Coroner and Inquests.

Our team has represented many housing and care providers through Inquest proceedings. Often, the law firm of choice due to our significant experience in this area, coupled with our leading sector expertise. As discussed in our recent blog, most insurers recognise our expertise and will work with us, at your request, ahead of their usual panel firm. For more on this, see here.

Safeguarding concerns and investigations.

Housing providers, their employees and contractors play an important role in safeguarding. We are able to support housing providers to understand the extent of their obligations and to provide support where safeguarding and welfare issues arise (including representing housing providers during safeguarding reviews and domestic homicide reviews). 

Policies and training

In addition, our team can support housing providers by conducting reviews of safety-related policies and procedures and providing training. This training can be bespoke to your needs and tailored for different levels of the organisation, from operational staff to the board.  

If you would like support in respect of any of the areas discussed above, or would like to discuss further how the regulatory team can help you, please contact RegulatoryTeam@anthonycollins.com.