Decision

Aspire Housing Limited (L4238) - Regulatory Judgement: 26 November 2025

Updated 26 November 2025

Applies to England

Our Judgement

	Grade/Judgement	Change	Date of assessment
Consumer	C1 Our judgement is that overall the landlord is delivering the outcomes of the consumer standards. The landlord has demonstrated that it identifies when issues occur and puts plans in place to remedy and minimise recurrence.	Based on previous assessment	January 2025
Governance	G1 Our judgement is that the landlord meets our governance requirements.	Assessed and unchanged	November 2025
Viability	V2 Our judgement is that the landlord meets our viability requirements. It has the financial capacity to deal with a reasonable range of adverse scenarios but needs to manage material risks to ensure continued compliance.	Assessed and unchanged	November 2025

Reason for publication

We are publishing a regulatory judgement for Aspire Housing Limited (Aspire) following a stability check completed in November 2025.

This regulatory judgement confirms a governance grade of G1 and a financial viability grade of V2. Aspire has a consumer grade of C1 from a planned inspection  completed in January 2025.

Summary of the decision

Based on the relevant information and evidence we reviewed in carrying out the stability check, our judgement is that Aspire meets our viability requirements and has the financial capacity to deal with a reasonable range of adverse scenarios. However, it needs to manage material risks to ensure continued compliance. We have therefore concluded the landlord’s grade is unchanged and issue a V2 grade for Aspire.

From the stability check, there is no evidence to indicate a change in governance grade is required. Aspire’s governance grade remains G1.

This regulatory judgement is based on a stability check which does not include a reassessment of Aspire’s delivery of the outcomes of our consumer standards.

Prior to this regulatory judgement, the landlord’s most recent consumer, governance and viability grades were C1, G1 and V2, which were confirmed in January 2025 following an inspection.

During the inspection, we considered all four of the consumer standards: the Neighbourhood and Community Standard, the Safety and Quality Standard, the Tenancy Standard, and the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard.

During the inspection we observed a board meeting, the tenant group and scrutiny panel, we spoke with tenants, held meetings with Aspire, including with its non-executive directors, and reviewed a wide range of documents provided by Aspire.

How we reached our judgement

We carried out a stability check of Aspire as part of our annual stability check programme.

Our judgement about how well Aspire is delivering the viability outcomes of our Governance and Financial Viability Standard is based on a review of a range of documents provided by Aspire, as well as analysis of information supplied by Aspire in its regulatory returns.

In confirming Aspire’s governance grade as part of the stability check, our work was limited to verifying that the information contained in Aspire’s regulatory returns did not appear inconsistent with its existing published governance grade.

Our stability checks do not assess a landlord’s delivery of the outcomes of our consumer standards.

Summary of findings

Consumer – C1 – January 2025

Below are the findings of our most recent regulatory judgement about Aspire’s delivery of the outcomes of our consumer standards, which assessed Aspire’s consumer grade as C1. The regulatory judgement was issued in January 2025 following a programmed inspection.

During our inspection, Aspire provided evidence-based assurance that it has appropriate systems in place to ensure the health and safety of tenants in their homes and associated communal areas. Aspire also demonstrated that it understands the condition of its homes and has a process in place for keeping this information up to date. Aspire provided evidence that it uses this information to inform its decisions on future investment and the provision of good quality, well maintained and safe homes for tenants. This includes ensuring its homes meet the Decent Homes Standard.

We saw evidence that Aspire has an effective repairs service for emergency repairs and has recently made improvements in the timeliness of non-urgent repairs to deliver better outcomes for tenants.

In relation to the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard we saw evidence that Aspire is delivering the required outcomes. The tenant voice was evident through its strategies, policies, and decision making, with meaningful opportunities for tenants to influence and scrutinise services.

Aspire demonstrated that it treats tenants with fairness and respect; and that specific actions are taken to deliver fair and equitable outcomes for tenants and meet diverse needs. We saw evidence that Aspire regularly reviews performance information on complaints handling, that it learns from information on complaint types and outcomes, and uses this to shape the design and delivery of services to make improvements in outcomes for tenants.

Governance – G1 – November 2025

From the stability check, there is no evidence to indicate that a change in governance grade is required.

Prior to this regulatory judgement, we issued a regulatory judgement in January 2025 following a programmed inspection of Aspire. Below are the findings in that judgement about Aspire’s delivery of our governance requirements.

Aspire was downgraded to G2 in January 2023 following weaknesses in financial planning and risk control that meant the board was not fully sighted on the financial exposures associated with a loss-making subsidiary. This subsidiary was closed at a cost to Aspire. Aspire also committed to additional expenditure on net zero carbon works that were outside its business plan in order to access grant funding. The additional costs arising from these decisions meant that Aspire needed to secure the agreement of its funders to maintain covenant compliance.

From the evidence-based assurance we saw throughout the responsive engagement process and the inspection, we have assurance that Aspire has strengthened its governance arrangements, which has improved its oversight of risks. 

Board membership has been refreshed and effectiveness reviews support a continued focus on governance arrangements. Following a fundamental review of its strategic objectives, we saw evidence that Aspire’s board has a clear strategic focus with enhanced oversight of activities and plans. The board has strengthened its risk management and control framework supporting the organisation in the delivery of its updated corporate objectives. The board considers alternative options to ensure it is achieving value for money in maximising resources.

During our inspection, we gained assurance that the board has set a clear strategic direction and is focused on hearing its tenants’ voices. Reporting to board provides clear information that facilitates effective oversight of key risks and supports effective decision making. Aspire provided evidence that the board actively seeks and gains an appropriate level of assurance across a range of areas. There is evidence that this assurance has been used to make continuous improvements to its landlord services, maintaining and improving homes, meeting building safety requirements and providing new homes.

Viability – V2 – November 2025

Based on evidence gained from the stability check, we have assurance that Aspire meets the viability requirements of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard.

We have concluded that Aspire’s financial plans are consistent with and support its financial strategy. Aspire’s business plan is appropriately funded, with sufficient liquidity and security in place to support its financial and business plans. Aspire is forecasting to maintain covenant compliance and stress testing shows that it is able to withstand a reasonable range of adverse economic scenarios.

Aspire continues to invest in its existing homes and these pressures, alongside the development of new homes means that its capacity to respond to adverse financial events is reduced.

Background to the judgement

About the landlord

According to the 2025 statistical data return, Aspire owns and manages 9,318 homes in eight local authorities in the north Midlands and Cheshire.

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 regulate at the landlord level to drive improvement in how landlords operate. By landlord we mean a registered provider of social housing. These can either be local authorities, or private registered providers (other organisations registered with us such as non-profit housing associations, co-operatives, or profit-making organisations). 

We set standards which state outcomes that landlords must deliver. The outcomes of our standards include both the required outcomes and specific expectations we set. Where we find there are significant failures in landlords which we consider to be material to the landlord’s delivery of those outcomes, we hold them to account. Ultimately this provides protection for tenants’ homes and services and achieves better outcomes for current and future tenants. It also contributes to a sustainable sector which can attract strong investment. 

We have a different role for regulating local authorities than for other landlords. This is because we have a narrower role for local authorities and the Governance and Financial Viability Standard, and Value for Money Standard do not apply. Further detail on which standards apply to different landlords can be found on our standards page. 

We assess the performance of landlords through inspections and by reviewing data that landlords are required to submit to us. In Depth Assessments (IDAs) were one of our previous assessment processes, which are now replaced by our inspections programme from 1 April 2024. We also respond where there is an issue or a potential issue that may be material to a landlord’s delivery of the outcomes of our standards. We publish regulatory judgements that describe our view of landlords’ performance with our standards. We also publish grades for landlords with more than 1,000 social housing homes. 

The Housing Ombudsman deals with individual complaints. When individual complaints are referred to us, we investigate if we consider that the issue may be material to a landlord’s delivery of the outcomes of our standards.  

For more information about our approach to regulation, please see Regulating the Standards.

Further information

• Regulating the standards

• Regulatory standards for landlords

Related documents

• Decent Homes Standard