Publication Category: Governance and Regulation – Quarterly D-Brief

Welcome to the new edition of our quarterly D-Brief, focussing on governance and regulatory issues pertinent to registered providers of social housing (RPs)!

A round-up of this quarter’s key developments in relation to governance and regulatory issues.

Through the Levelling Up White Paper and the Social Housing White Paper, the Government is seeking to ensure that social housing has satisfactory electrical safety and uniformity with the private rented sector.

The Charity Commission has issued guidance on the changes being introduced by the Charities Act 2022 (the Act) that are planned to come into effect in autumn 2022.

While it is not mandatory for housing providers to report against ESG criteria, the sector has led the way in creating its own reporting standard, the Sustainability Reporting Standard for Social Housing (the Standard), which was launched in November 2020.

The Senior Independent Director (SID) is not a new concept and has been included in various iterations of the UK Corporate Governance Code following the publication of the Higgs Review in 2003. That Review recommended that boards of publicly listed companies should appoint a SID.

The NHF issued its revised model code of conduct (the NHF Code) in May. The NHF Code seeks to provide a template for an ethical working environment, on which an organisation’s reputation can be developed. But why is this important, and what can organisations get from adopting a Code of Conduct?

We have been working with a number of our RP clients to ensure their constitutions remain fit for purpose.

A round-up of the upcoming developments for charities.

We are pleased to have supported the National Housing Federation (NHF) and Campbell Tickell in preparing the new Code of Conduct, which was issued in May 2022.