Regulation is key to building more homes, says RSH chief executive
Jonathan Walters was speaking at the Social Housing Finance Conference yesterday.
Jonathan Walters, the Regulator of Social Housing’s new chief executive, used his address to the Social Housing Finance Conference to remind landlords of their crucial role in building new social homes and maintaining good-quality homes for tenants.
Jonathan reiterated that, with over one million people on waiting lists, the “need for more and better homes has never been more urgent”. He added that “landlords must be prepared to innovate and bring forward new models of delivery” that ensure a “long-term and sustainable commitment to social housing.”
To seize the opportunities afforded by extra grant funding, landlords “need to make sure they are well run and think carefully about risks that could impact on development plans”.
Jonathan said that “regulation is fundamental to unlocking new supply. We want to support the sector to build more, and we will start a discussion this summer about how we can move our economic regulation forward to best support this exciting agenda.”
Notes to editors
-
Jonathan Walters became RSH’s chief executive on 1 May 2026 - see announcement.
-
He was speaking at the Social Housing Finance Conference, while took place on Thursday 14 May 2026 in London.
-
RSH promotes a viable, efficient and well-governed social housing sector able to deliver and maintain homes of appropriate quality that meet a range of needs. It does this by undertaking robust economic regulation focusing on governance, financial viability and value for money that maintains lender confidence and protects the taxpayer. It also sets consumer standards and may take action if these standards are breached and there is a significant risk of serious detriment to tenants or potential tenants.
-
For press office contact details, see our media enquiries page.