London Borough of Hillingdon (00AS) - Regulatory Judgement: 30 July 2025
Published 30 July 2025
Applies to England
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Our Judgement
| Grade / Judgement | Change | Date of assessment | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer | C2 Our judgement is that there are some weaknesses in the landlord delivering the outcomes of the consumer standards and improvement is needed. |
First grading | July 2025 |
Reason for publication
We are publishing a regulatory judgement for the London Borough of Hillingdon (LB Hillingdon) following responsive engagement which began in August 2024, and an inspection completed in July 2025.
The judgement confirms a consumer grading of C2. This is the first time we have issued a consumer grade in relation to this landlord.
Summary of the decision
From the evidence and assurance provided during the inspection, our judgement is that there are some weaknesses in LB Hillingdon delivering the outcomes of the consumer standards and improvement is needed, specifically in relation to the outcomes in the Safety and Quality Standard, the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard and, to a lesser extent, the Neighbourhood and Community Standard. Based on this assessment, we have concluded a C2 grade for LB Hillingdon.
How we reached our judgement
In August 2024 we received a self-referral from LB Hillingdon which identified concerns regarding its delivery of the outcomes of the Safety and Quality Standard, and we began responsive engagement. We then carried out a planned inspection of LB Hillingdon to assess how well it is delivering the outcomes of the consumer standards as part of our regulatory inspection programme. We considered all four consumer standards: Neighbourhood and Community Standard, Safety and Quality Standard, Tenancy Standard, and the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard.
During the inspection we observed meetings of the Cabinet, the Residents’ Services Select Committee, the Corporate Resources and Infrastructure Select Committee, the Landlord Board, and two Special Interest Group tenant meetings. As part of the inspection, we met with engaged tenants, officers, and councillors including the deputy leader of LB Hillingdon. We also reviewed a wide range of documents provided by LB Hillingdon.
Our regulatory judgement is based on a review of all the information we obtained during the inspection as well as analysis of information received from LB Hillingdon in our responsive engagement, its regulatory returns and other other regulatory activity.
Summary of findings
Consumer – C2 – July 2025
The Safety and Quality Standard requires landlords to have an accurate, up to date and evidenced understanding of the condition of their homes that reliably informs the provision of good quality, well maintained and safe homes for tenants and to ensure that tenants’ homes meet the requirements of the Decent Homes Standard.
Through our responsive engagement with LB Hillingdon, and during the inspection, we saw evidence that LB Hillingdon has an accurate, up to date and evidenced understanding of the condition of 87% of its homes, based on a physical assessment at individual property level and supplemented using a range of other information sources. LB Hillingdon has plans in place to ensure that all remaining homes are physically surveyed within appropriate timescales by the end of 2025, following which a rolling programme will be implemented. Whilst LB Hillingdon has a number of homes not meeting the Decent Homes Standard, it has developed a costed improvement plan, and we saw evidence of LB Hillingdon’s ability to adapt this plan based on identified risks. The majority of works required to homes are lower risk, whilst the small proportion of higher risk hazards identified have been addressed. We will continue to engage with LB Hillingdon to monitor its progress in delivering its plan and addressing this weakness.
The Safety and Quality Standard also requires landlords to identify and meet all legal requirements that relate to the health and safety of tenants in their homes and communal areas, and ensure that all required actions arising from legally required health and safety assessments are carried out within appropriate timescales. During the inspection, LB Hillingdon provided evidence that it is currently meeting the legal requirements that relate to the health and safety of tenants in their homes and communal areas. Whilst overall compliance performance is strong, LB Hillingdon is taking steps to improve its performance reporting so that there is evidence of robust oversight to manage risks effectively. We also saw evidence that LB Hillingdon has developed its approach to damp and mould, although we observed a lack of performance reporting on overdue cases and inconsistencies in reporting to senior officers and councillors. Through our ongoing engagement, we will seek assurance that LB Hillingdon continues to develop its approach to address the weaknesses in its performance reporting.
The Safety and Quality Standard also requires landlords to provide an effective, efficient and timely repairs service for the homes and communal areas for which they are responsible. Through the inspection we saw evidence that LB Hillingdon is generally providing an efficient and effective repairs service, and we noted that the timeliness of the repairs service has recently improved. However, weaknesses remain in the reporting of repairs performance to senior leaders and councillors, and in the provision of clear and timely communication to tenants about repairs timescales and planned improvements to their homes. We also found weaknesses in how LB Hillingdon communicates how it will assist tenants seeking housing adaptations services. LB Hillingdon is aware of these issues and has improvement plans in place to address them.
The Neighbourhood and Community Standard states that landlords must work in partnership with appropriate local authority departments, the police and other relevant organisations to deter and tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB) and hate incidents in the neighbourhoods where they provide social housing. Through the inspection, we saw evidence that LB Hillingdon has a consistent approach to deterring and tackling ASB and hate crime, and that it meets the requirements of the Standard. However, whilst its process is set out on its website, LB Hillingdon’s ASB policy is yet to be formally approved, and LB Hillingdon could not provide evidence that it is meeting its service standards in relation to ASB. LB Hillingdon is reviewing its ASB service and planning improvements, and we will continue to monitor progress through our ongoing engagement and seek assurance that improvements are embedded.
The Neighbourhood and Community Standard also states that landlords must work co-operatively with other agencies tackling domestic abuse and enabling tenants to access appropriate support and advice. During the inspection, LB Hillingdon provided assurance that it is meeting these expectations.
In relation to the Tenancy Standard, we saw evidence that LB Hillingdon offers tenancies or terms of occupation that are compatible with the purpose of its accommodation, the needs of individual households, the sustainability of the community and the efficient use of its housing stock. LB Hillingdon’s Tenancy Policy outlines its approach to tenancy management, and we saw evidence of procedures and systems in place to ensure the policy is applied. LB Hillingdon also provided assurance that it supports tenants living in eligible housing to mutually exchange their homes.
The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard states that landlords must treat tenants and prospective tenants with fairness and respect and take action to deliver fair and equitable outcomes for tenants. During the inspection LB Hillingdon provided assurance that it is committed to treating tenants with fairness and respect and we saw examples of service delivery tailored to known needs. However, we found that LB Hillingdon has a limited understanding of its tenants’ characteristics and needs, and this restricts LB Hillingdon’s ability to fully evidence that it is delivering fair and equitable outcomes for all tenants. During the inspection, we saw evidence of the action LB Hillingdon is taking to develop its understanding of its tenants and through our ongoing engagement we will seek assurance of improved outcomes for tenants.
The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard requires landlords to provide accessible information so tenants can use landlord services, understand what to expect from their landlord and hold their landlord to account. Performance reporting made available to tenants is limited and we observed a reliance on sharing information online along with communications that exclusively promote digital access to services. Improvements also need to be made in the information LB Hillingdon provides to tenants on the standards of safety and quality they can expect. Developing a communications approach based on tenants’ known needs and preferences, along with more transparent reporting, will enhance LB Hillingdon’s ability to ensure information is accessible and support tenants to scrutinise decision making. At the time of the inspection, we noted that LB Hillingdon’s improvement plans include objectives to improve accessibility to services.
The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard also requires landlords to take tenants’ views into account when making decisions about the delivery of landlord services. LB Hillingdon’s approach to tenant engagement is in its early stages, and whilst we did see examples of tenants influencing operational service design and delivery, LB Hillingdon was unable to provide assurance that tenants’ feedback and views are systematically being heard at strategic levels within the council. LB Hillingdon had identified this as a gap prior to the inspection and has plans in place to deliver more tenant-led scrutiny. We will work with LB Hillingdon to monitor its progress and to improve outcomes in this area.
The Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard states that landlords must ensure complaints are addressed fairly, effectively, and promptly. LB Hillingdon has recently enhanced its approach to complaints reporting and we gained assurance during the inspection that the majority of complaints are responded to promptly, with performance against complaint timescales recently improving. We found weaknesses in the accessibility of the complaints approach with information only directing tenants to online reporting. LB Hillingdon has a plan in place to further improve its approach to complaints, and we will seek assurance that changes are leading to improved outcomes for tenants and performance continues to improve and be sustained.
LB Hillingdon has engaged constructively with us following its self-referral and throughout the subsequent inspection. Since identifying weaknesses in the delivery of outcomes, LB Hillingdon has successfully addressed a number of issues and is putting in place appropriate and resourced plans to rectify the remaining weaknesses. We will continue to engage with LB Hillingdon to seek assurance that it has robust reporting structures in place to enable effective oversight and challenge, as it seeks to address the issues that have led to this judgement.
Background to the judgement
About the landlord
LB Hillingdon owns 10,253 social housing homes in West London.
Our role and regulatory approach
We regulate for a viable, efficient, and well governed social housing sector able to deliver quality homes and services for current and future tenants.
We actively assess the performance of registered landlords with our standards through inspections and reviewing data which we require landlords to submit to us. We also respond to information where we become aware of issues within individual landlords. We publish regulatory judgements which describe our view of landlords’ performance with our standards. We also publish grades for landlords with more than 1,000 social housing homes.
For more information about our approach to regulation, please see How we Regulate.