Decision

Islington and Shoreditch Housing Association Limited (L0457) - Regulatory Judgement: 17 December 2025

Updated 17 December 2025

Applies to England

Our Judgement

Grade/Judgement Change Date of assessment
Consumer   Not assessed yet  
Governance G1
Our judgement is that the landlord meets our governance requirements.
Assessed and unchanged December 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 December 2025

Reason for publication

We are publishing a regulatory judgement for Islington and Shoreditch Housing Association Limited (ISHA) following a stability check completed in December 2025.

This regulatory judgement confirms a governance grade of G1 and a financial viability grade of V2.

Summary of the decision

Based on the relevant information and evidence we reviewed in carrying out the stability check, our judgement is that ISHA 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 ISHA.

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

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

Prior to this regulatory judgement, the governance grade for ISHA was last updated in April 2025 following responsive engagement to issue a governance grade of G1. The financial viability grade was last updated in September 2024 following responsive engagement to issue a financial viability grade of V2.

How we reached our judgement

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

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

In confirming ISHA’s governance grade as part of the stability check, our work was limited to verifying that the information contained in ISHA’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

Governance – G1 – December 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 April 2025 following responsive engagement with ISHA. Below are the findings in that judgement about ISHA’s delivery of our governance requirements.

Based on the evidence gained from our responsive engagement, we have concluded that we have appropriate assurance that ISHA’s governance arrangements enable it to effectively manage its risks and adequately control the organisation, allowing it to deliver its objectives.

ISHA has strengthened its governance and has evidenced that its internal control processes are working more effectively to support the identification, management and mitigation of possible fraud activity. ISHA has made improvements to the oversight and management of fraud risks and the wider control environment, and we have seen evidence that these are effective. There is assurance that ISHA’s governance processes, including its board, provide sufficient oversight of its financial performance and delivery of its strategy.

Overall, we consider that ISHA has provided appropriate assurance that it has sufficiently addressed the governance weaknesses previously identified. Our judgement is that the landlord meets our governance requirements.

Viability – V2 – December 2025

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

ISHA’s financial plans are consistent with, and support, its financial strategy. ISHA has an adequately funded business plan, sufficient security in place, and is forecast to continue to meet its financial covenants. However, ISHA has material risks that it needs to manage. It is operating with a low level of financial headroom and is continuing investment in its existing homes, which includes meeting building safety requirements. ISHA also has plans to increase debt to fund the on-going development of new homes. Based on the evidence gained from the stability check ISHA has the capacity to respond to a reasonable range of adverse scenarios.

Background to the judgement

About the landlord

According to the 2025 statistical data return ISHA owns 2,339 homes in North and East 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 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