West Lancashire Borough Council achieves top grade for consumer standards from Housing Regulator
- C1 Judgement is the highest grade possible from the Regulator for Social Housing
- West Lancashire is one of the few local authority landlords to achieve the top rating
- Government housing regulator judges social landlords on how well they meet the housing consumer standards
- Grading hailed as ‘amazing achievement’ by lead member for Housing
West Lancashire Borough Council has become one of the first local authorities who directly manage their tenants’ homes to achieve the highest grade issued by the government’s social housing regulator.
The C1 judgement demonstrates the Council’s commitment to its tenants by meeting all consumer standards. The judgement also confirms that when issues occur, plans are effectively put in place to remedy problems and minimise recurrences.
Councillor Nicola Pryce-Roberts, Lead Member for Housing said: “Congratulations to everyone at West Lancashire Borough Council. This is an amazing achievement.
"I am incredibly proud of all the employees involved and the tenant groups who have helped and supported us to improve our services for them.
“The C1 result is very well deserved as the Council has continued to self-reflect, create improvement plans and actioned improvements to deliver better services for our tenants.
“While we always strive to provide the best service and are delighted with this recognition, we will continue to seek to improve and ensure residents are receiving the very best we can offer in all our interactions.”
The Consumer Standards are in place to ensure all tenants have a safe, secure, and well-maintained home, with clear communication and good service from social landlords. The standards are:
- Safety and Quality Standard
- Tenancy Standard
- Neighbourhood and Community Standard
- Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard
During an inspection, landlords are measured against specific criteria to assess how they meet the standards. This is supported by a code of practice that landlords must follow.
This is the first time West Lancashire Borough Council has been inspected by the housing regulator following the change in regulation in April 2024. According to the judgement, the Council has demonstrated how it complied with statutory health and safety requirements and understanding the importance of the quality and safety of tenants’ homes to inform future decisions on investment.
The regulator found that the Council is well underway with delivering a clear plan which is focussing on developing a better understanding of tenants’ needs and working hard to ensure services are shaped around tenants' requirements.
The regulator was also satisfied that the Council uses complaints to improve, learning from these complaints as well as other evidence to inform service changes and work prioritisation.
To read the full regulatory judgement report visit the website: West Lancashire Borough Council - GOV.UK
