Social landlords have a duty under the ‘Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974’ (‘the 1974 Act’) to ensure that they act in a way which does not put tenants or others at risk. ‘The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999’ make more explicit what organisations are required to do to manage health and safety under the 1974 Act.

Social landlords must ensure that they meet all of their duties on tenant and resident safety; obtain appropriate assurance about their compliance with all relevant safety requirements and ensure that they take prompt action to address any noncompliance.

Within their Annual Assurance Statements submitted to SHR each year, they must also provide assurance that their organisation complies with all relevant regulatory requirements. This includes confirmation that they meet all of their legal duties and responsibilities in relation to health and safety.

The purpose of the tenant health and safety survey is to provide the Regulator with some additional, more detailed information about how landlords gain this assurance. It is particularly interested to understand how landlords gain assurance that their systems, policies, procedures and working practices ensure compliance with health and safety requirements.

The findings of the survey will be used to help inform the Regulator’s annual risk assessment and its planned engagement with landlords in 2022-23. An overview of the key findings from the survey will be included when a summary of the outcomes from the risk assessment is published at the end of March.

Landlords are asked to complete the survey by January 26.