Tower Hamlets council commits £609 million to housing upgrades over the next decade, but faces persistent challenges with repair backlogs and resident satisfaction.
The Housing and Regeneration Scrutiny Sub Committee met on Monday, 5 October 2026, to discuss the council's ongoing efforts to enhance housing quality and the performance of registered social landlords in delivering timely repairs. The meeting's findings reveal significant investment plans alongside a detailed look at the complexities of maintaining resident satisfaction.
Improvements and Challenges
The council's housing stock is slated for substantial upgrades, including new kitchens, bathrooms, windows, and doors, alongside critical fire safety works. This £609 million investment programme is designed to tackle issues such as overdue repairs, damp and mould, and building safety compliance. While performance in emergency and routine repairs has seen improvement since 2024-25, with a higher percentage of issues resolved on the first visit, 18.32% of council homes still do not meet the Decent Homes Standard. This figure represents a 1.8% decrease from the previous year, attributed to the completion of stock condition surveys and work programmes addressing non-decency, such as domestic electrical and front entrance door inspections. Projects to improve kitchens and bathrooms are ongoing, with the overall programme expected to span the next decade. Procurement for long-term contracts to deliver these upgrades is underway, with contractor appointments anticipated by Summer 2027.
The Decent Homes Standard, a quality benchmark for housing in England, requires homes to be free from serious health and safety hazards, in a reasonable state of repair, possess reasonably modern facilities, and provide adequate thermal comfort. The exact reasons for the remaining 18% of homes failing to meet the standard are not fully detailed, but the report indicates that further stock condition surveys and planned workstreams are necessary. The outturn for Decent Homes for the coming year will be largely dependent on the outcome of the remaining surveys to be completed and making currently non-decent homes decent through the delivery of planned workstreams.
A new specialist leaks team has been introduced, and the repairs policy is under review to enhance service delivery. Progress has also been made in reducing overdue actions related to fire and water safety, as well as communal electrical safety.
Registered Social Landlord Performance
Representatives from Clarion Housing Association and Peabody Housing Association presented their repair performance data. Clarion reported a 15% increase in their right first time
repair rate, reaching 90.5%, and a 4% increase in emergency repair response times to 96.5%. However, resident feedback highlighted delays in repair completion as the primary driver of dissatisfaction.
Peabody Housing Association reported that 96% of emergency repairs were completed within target times. Their responsive repairs spend in Tower Hamlets for 2025-26 was £5.2 million. Both organisations acknowledged challenges in recruiting and retaining skilled operatives in a competitive market. Clarion noted that while many operatives wish to stay, their rigorous performance standards sometimes lead to departures. Both Clarion and Peabody are investing in apprenticeships to address this shortage. Clarion takes on at least two apprentices per region annually, including apprentice surveyors, while Peabody has recruited 10 repair inspectors as apprentices to oversee contractor work.
Resident Feedback and Future Plans
Despite improvements, resident feedback indicates ongoing concerns about delays in repair completion, the quality of work, and recurring problems. The most common reasons for resident dissatisfaction are delays in getting repairs completed (43%), followed by the quality of work (14%) and problems reoccurring after repairs (13%). For Peabody, the top three repair complaint categories are heating and hot water, plumbing leaks, and lifts. Delays in issuing Stage One responses have contributed to an increase in complaints escalated to Stage Two. Clarion also noted an increase in aged work-in-progress following the introduction of Awaab's Law, which mandates up to 12 weeks for investigations and completion of certain jobs.
Peabody is implementing a resident-centred approach to risk assessment for damp and mould, focusing on the impact on residents. They are also making the repairs service more local and accountable by assigning contractors to specific estates, fostering local knowledge and quicker, more effective repairs. This has contributed to a year-to-date transactional satisfaction increase from 75% to 80% in Tower Hamlets. However, they acknowledge a mixed view on overall resident satisfaction, with more recent repairs showing a decrease, which they are addressing through performance improvement plans with contractors.
Clarion is implementing improved triage processes and strengthening contractor management. The council's strategy for ensuring the £609 million investment programme addresses underlying issues causing damp and mould, beyond superficial fixes, is still being developed. While damp and mould are a focus, with a new process and dedicated team for high-risk cases, the report does not explicitly detail how the investment programme is allocated to address root causes. The Delivering Decent Homes: Review the £609m Housing Investment Programme
is listed as a future scrutiny spotlight, indicating a deeper examination is planned. The council has stated its commitment to addressing any performance issues identified to deliver an improved service and safer homes for residents.
The committee reviewed the work programme for the upcoming year, which includes scrutiny of housing quality, RSL performance, homelessness transformation, and the £609 million housing investment programme. The importance of pre-decision scrutiny and incorporating resident feedback into the work programme was emphasized.
For more details, see the Public reports pack.