Hounslow Council's social housing landlord service has received a C2 grade following a recent inspection, indicating that improvements are needed. Despite being the second highest grade possible, the C2 rating means that improvement is required in some areas. The Regulator will continue to engage with Hounslow to monitor progress on the areas identified for improvement. The Overview and Scrutiny Committee reviewed the Housing Inspection Outcome at their meeting on 27 November 2025.
The inspection, conducted by the Regulator of Social Housing, assessed the council's performance against four consumer standards: Safety and Quality; Transparency, Influence and Accountability; Tenancy; and Neighbourhood and Community.
While the overall judgement was the second highest grade possible, the regulator identified weaknesses in meeting the Safety and Quality Standard and the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard.
Key Findings
Safety and Quality Standard
The report highlighted that while Hounslow has surveyed approximately 50% of its homes in the last five years, further work is required to complete physical surveys of all homes. Although core health and safety obligations are being met, the inspection revealed weaknesses in completing overdue fire, water, and electrical remedial actions. The council will continue to deliver the approved programme of works to council homes to achieve the decent homes standard. Actions are being actively delivered, and progress will be reported regularly to Lead member & the Regulator of Social Housing. The report also noted that improvements are needed in how health and safety performance is reported to councillors and tenants.
Repairs Service
The council's repairs service was deemed effective and timely, with performance targets largely met and previous backlogs addressed. Continued improvement work is underway.
Neighbourhood and Community Standard
Strong partnership working is in place with police and voluntary organisations to tackle anti-social behaviour and hate incidents. The service responds to reports in line with policy and has implemented recommendations from service reviews.
Tenancy Standard
Tenancy arrangements are appropriate to household needs and support community sustainability.
Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard
Performance information is not sufficiently accessible to tenants. While some tenant scrutiny is in place, further support is needed to enable tenants to lead scrutiny effectively and receive feedback on its impact.
Tenant Engagement and Fairness
Hounslow is committed to fairness and respect, with some understanding of diverse tenant needs. Further work is needed to improve the quality of tenant data to support equitable service delivery.
Complaints Handling
Complaints are addressed fairly, effectively and promptly. Following a period of deteriorated performance, improvements have been made, and response targets are now broadly being met.
The full report is available on the Regulator of Social Housing website.
Next Steps
The Regulator will continue to engage with Hounslow to monitor progress on the areas identified for improvement.
