Decision

Poplar Housing and Regeneration Community Association Limited (L4170) - Regulatory Judgement: 14 January 2026

Updated 14 January 2026

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	April 2025
Governance	G1 Our judgement is that the landlord meets our governance requirements.	Assessed and unchanged	January 2026
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	January 2026

Reason for publication

We are publishing a regulatory judgement for Poplar Housing and Regeneration Community Association Limited (Poplar) following a stability check completed in January 2026.

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

Summary of the decision

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

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

This regulatory judgement is based on a stability check which does not include a reassessment of Poplar’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 issued in April 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 and Poplar’s Joint Estates Panel, spoke to tenants, held meetings with Poplar and its non-executive directors, and reviewed a wide range of documents provided by Poplar.

How we reached our judgement

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

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

In confirming Poplar’s governance grade as part of the stability check, our work was limited to verifying that the information contained in Poplar’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 – April 2025

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

During the inspection, Poplar provided evidence-based assurance that it has appropriate systems for ensuring the health and safety of its tenants in their homes and communal areas. Poplar also demonstrated that it understands the condition of its homes and has a process in place for keeping this information up to date and for proactively identifying potential problems. Poplar 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 residents. This includes ensuring its homes meet the Decent Homes Standard.

Poplar has demonstrated it provides an effective repairs and maintenance service that responds appropriately to the urgency of works and resident vulnerabilities and is taking action to further improve the service and outcomes for residents.

Poplar provided assurance that it is delivering the outcomes of the Neighbourhood and Community Standard, including through its partnership working with other organisations to deter and tackle anti-social behaviour and hate incidents. We also saw evidence that it is allocating and letting its homes in a fair and transparent way and supporting its tenants to maintain their tenancy.

In relation to the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard, we gained assurance that Poplar is delivering the required outcomes. It has a well-established resident engagement framework that provides meaningful opportunities for residents to influence and scrutinise services. The resident voice was evident through its strategies, policies, and decision making.

We saw evidence that Poplar uses the information and data it holds about the diverse needs of its residents to understand and respond to their needs. Poplar also provides residents with accessible information about its performance and services.

Poplar demonstrated that it treats tenants with fairness and respect, and specific actions are taken to deliver fair and equitable outcomes for tenants and meet diverse needs. We saw evidence that Poplar 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 improve outcomes for tenants.

Governance – G1 – January 2026

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 a programmed inspection of Poplar. Below are the findings in that judgement about Poplar’s delivery of our governance requirements.

Poplar has provided assurance that its governance arrangements are effective in delivering its strategic objectives, social purpose and value for money. It has demonstrated that its actions are consistent with its code of governance and its legal and regulatory obligations, seeking external advice where appropriate. Poplar has provided assurance that its board proactively reviews its approach to delivering the regeneration of its communities and considers alternative options to ensure it is making the best use of resources. It has provided evidence that it has an effective business planning, risk management and control framework, with a good understanding of its risk profile and mitigations.

We saw evidence that the board is effectively managing and scrutinising its financial position, with appropriate oversight and approval of financial plans, strategies, and policies. Decision making is supported by robust stress testing, carried out against identified risks with appropriate mitigation strategies.

Poplar has a skilled and independent board that effectively scrutinises performance. Supported by an appropriate committee structure, it actively seeks assurance in relation to group activities and financial viability, providing oversight in relation to the delivery of outcomes for residents under our consumer standards. The board annually reviews its own effectiveness and performance and undertakes regular external reviews of its governance arrangements. In line with the organisation’s risks and activities, Poplar has addressed potential gaps in board member skills and experience through its succession planning.

Viability – V2 – January 2026

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

We have concluded that Poplar’s financial plans are consistent with and support its financial strategy. Poplar has an adequately funded business plan, sufficient security in place and is forecast to continue to meet its financial covenants.

Poplar’s business plan includes the delivery of a significant programme of development and regeneration driving an increase in debt levels and constraining financial capacity. Shared ownership sales, and the disposal of assets which are not central to its purpose, also contribute significantly to turnover.

Poplar continues to increase its investment into existing homes, including to meet energy efficiency targets. Investment in the fire remediation programme constrains its financial performance and capacity in the short term.

Poplar’s stress testing shows that there is financial capacity in the business plan to mitigate a reasonable range of adverse scenarios, but it will need to manage material risks.

Background to the judgement

About the landlord

According to the 2025 statistical data return Poplar owns 5,545 homes in 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

• Regulating the standards

• Regulatory standards for landlords

Related documents

• Decent Homes Standard