Decision

Current regulatory judgement: Teign Housing (13 December 2023)

Updated 13 December 2023

Applies to England

RSH Narrative Regulatory Judgement

  • Provider: Teign Housing
  • Regulatory code: LH4403
  • Publication date: 13 December 2023
  • Governance grade: G1
  • Viability grade: V2
  • Reason for publication: Viability regrade
  • Regulatory route: Stability Check and Reactive Engagement

Regulatory judgement

This regulatory judgement regrades our previous published assessment of Teign Housing’s financial viability from V1 to V2 and confirms its existing G1 grade for governance.

The regulator has assurance that Teign Housing (Teign) continues to comply with the financial viability elements of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and that its financial plans are consistent with, and support, its financial strategy. Teign has an adequately funded business plan, sufficient security, and is forecast to continue to meet its financial covenants.

Teign is increasing investment in its existing homes and will continue to do so informed by planned surveys on the condition of its homes. This is weakening its interest cover which, when coupled with wider economic pressures including inflation, reduces Teign’s capacity to deal with adverse scenarios.

The regulator’s assessment of Teign’s compliance with the governance elements of the Governance and Financial Viability Standard remains unchanged. On the basis of the Stability Check, the regulator has concluded that there is no evidence to indicate a change to Teign’s current governance grading.

Other providers included in the judgement

None

About the provider

Origins

Teign is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. It was established in 2004 to receive the transfer of stock from Teignbridge District Council. Its core business is the provision of general needs housing and housing for older people.

Registered Entities

Teign is the only registered entity in the group.

Unregistered Entities

Teign has one subsidiary, Templer HomeBuild Limited, which provides property maintenance and construction services.

Geographic Spread and Scale

Teign owns or manages around 3,800 homes in Devon.

Staffing and Turnover

The group employs 160 full-time equivalent staff. Group turnover for the year ended 31 March 2023 was £21.4m.

Development

Teign plans to develop 259 social rent, affordable rent and low cost ownership homes by 2028.

About our judgements

Key to Grades

Governance:

Compliant
G1 The provider meets our governance requirements.
G2 The provider meets our governance requirements but needs to improve some aspects of its governance arrangements to support continued compliance.
Non-compliant
G3 The provider does not meet our governance requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern and in agreement with us the provider is working to improve its position.
G4 The provider does not meet our governance requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern, and the provider is subject to regulatory intervention or enforcement action.

Viability:

Compliant
V1 The provider meets our viability requirements and has the financial capacity to deal with a wide range of adverse scenarios.
V2 The provider 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.
Non-compliant
V3 The provider does not meet our viability requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern and, in agreement with us, the provider is working to improve its position.
V4 The provider does not meet our viability requirements. There are issues of serious regulatory concern, and the provider is subject to regulatory intervention or enforcement action.

Note: The use of an asterisk (*) against a grade indicates that the assessment refers to a provider that is designated as being for-profit.

Definitions of Regulatory Routes

In Depth Assessment (IDA): An IDA is a bespoke assessment of a provider’s viability and governance, including its approach to value for money. It involves on-site work and considers in detail a provider’s ability to meet its financial obligations and the effectiveness of its governance structures and processes.

Stability Checks: Based primarily on information supplied through regulatory returns, a Stability Check is an annual review of a provider’s financial position and its latest business plan. The review is focused on determining if there is evidence to indicate a provider’s current judgements merit reconsideration.

Reactive Engagement: Reactive engagement is unplanned work which is triggered by new information or a developing situation which may have implications for a provider’s current regulatory judgement.

Stability Checks and Reactive Engagement: In some cases, we will publish narrative regulatory judgements which combine evidence gained from both Stability Checks and Reactive Engagement.

For further details about these processes, please see Regulating the Standards.