Decision

Wandle Housing Association Limited (L0277) - Regulatory Judgement: 24 June 2026

Updated 24 June 2026

Applies to England

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

Reason for publication

We are publishing a regulatory judgement for Wandle Housing Association Limited (Wandle) following an inspection completed in June 2026.

This regulatory judgement confirms a consumer grade of C2, a governance grade of G1 and a financial viability grade of V2.

Prior to this regulatory judgement, the governance and financial viability gradings for Wandle were last updated in November 2025 following a stability check to confirm a G1 grade for governance and a V2 grade for financial viability. This is the first time we have issued a consumer grade in relation to this landlord.

Summary of the decision

From the assurance gained during the inspection, based on the evidence provided by Wandle, we have concluded that there are some weaknesses in the delivery of the outcomes of the consumer standards and improvement is needed, specifically in relation to outcomes in our Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard, Neighbourhood and Community Standard, and Safety and Quality Standard. Based on this assessment, we have concluded a C2 grade for Wandle.

Our judgement is that Wandle meets our governance requirements. Wandle has provided evidence that demonstrates the effectiveness of its governance arrangements and that it continues to effectively manage the risks of its activities, allowing it to deliver its strategic and charitable objectives. Based on this assessment, we have concluded a G1 grade for Wandle.

Our judgement is that Wandle meets our financial viability requirements and has the financial capacity to deal with a reasonable range of adverse scenarios. Wandle has provided assurance it has access to sufficient liquidity and funding to deliver its financial plan. However, due to continued investment in existing homes alongside plans for new development, Wandle has a reduced capacity to respond to adverse events. Based on this assessment, we have concluded a V2 grade for Wandle.

How we reached our judgement

We carried out an inspection of Wandle to assess how well it is delivering the outcomes of the consumer standards and meeting our governance and financial viability requirements, as part of our planned regulatory inspection programme. During the inspection, we considered all four of the consumer standards: Neighbourhood and Community Standard, Safety and Quality Standard, Tenancy Standard, and the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard.

During the inspection we observed a board meeting and Customer Change and Improvement Panel, spoke with tenants, held meetings with Wandle, including its non-executive directors and staff, and reviewed a wide range of documents provided by Wandle.

Our regulatory judgement is based on all the relevant information we obtained during the inspection as well as analysis of information supplied by Wandle in its regulatory returns and other regulatory engagement activity.

Summary of findings  

Consumer – C2 – June 2026

Through the inspection, Wandle provided evidence-based assurance that it understands its responsibilities and has effective arrangements in place to ensure the health and safety of its tenants in their homes and associated communal areas. Compliance with landlord health and safety requirements is generally strong and we saw evidence that processes are in place to manage damp and mould effectively. Wandle has appropriate systems in place to meet the legally required timescales for the inspection and repair of significant and emergency hazards.

We gained assurance that Wandle has assessed its higher risk buildings and is taking action to complete fire remediation works in line with its programme. Wandle provided evidence that it has implemented appropriate mitigations while this programme is ongoing. However, Wandle should be further along with this work to ensure that tenant vulnerabilities are fully understood and appropriately mitigated. We will continue to engage with Wandle to seek assurance that sufficient progress is being made to understand residents’ needs so that this can continue to inform its approach.

Through the inspection, we gained assurance that Wandle keeps an accurate and up-to-date record of the condition of its homes through physical surveys and that this information is used to update its investment plans. Wandle maintains a high level of compliance with the Decent Homes Standard.

Wandle has demonstrated that it is making progress in delivering an efficient and timely repairs and maintenance service. A transformation programme, informed by tenants’ feedback, has led to improvements in the response times for emergency and routine repairs. There is more work for Wandle to do to ensure the changes it is making will address weaknesses, including around repairs appointments and communication. More time is required to show sustained improvements in the outcomes being delivered for tenants and we will continue to engage with Wandle while it completes its improvement work and tenant satisfaction increases.  

In relation to the Neighbourhood and Community Standard, Wandle has identified a need to improve aspects of its anti-social behaviour service and has begun work to address this with planned involvement from affected tenants. We will continue to engage closely with Wandle to ensure it moves quickly to strengthen its approach.

In relation to the Transparency, Influence and Accountability Standard, we saw evidence that Wandle gives tenants meaningful opportunities to scrutinise and influence strategies, policies and services. Wandle is focused on making changes to its service delivery to strengthen trust and improve the tenant experience.

We saw evidence that Wandle considers the diverse needs of its tenants in the design and delivery of services and processes are in place to identify vulnerable tenants. Wandle recognises that there is a need to improve its understanding through addressing the gaps in the information it holds using targeted surveys and conducting visits to tenants. This will strengthen Wandle’s assurance that it is delivering fair and equitable outcomes for tenants.

We have assurance that Wandle has strengthened its complaints handling approach. Wandle demonstrates a good understanding of the drivers behind high complaint volumes and has improved the timeliness of its responses. Wandle will continue to implement the planned changes to demonstrate improved resolution and increased tenant satisfaction.

We have assurance that, in relation to the Tenancy Standard, Wandle allocates and lets its homes in a fair and transparent way, in co-operation with local authorities, while considering the needs of its tenants and prospective tenants. Wandle demonstrated that it ensures that the tenancies and terms granted are appropriate and supports tenants to maintain their tenancy.

We continue to actively engage with Wandle to monitor its progress in improving its delivery of the outcomes of our consumer standards.

Governance – G1 – June 2026

Based on the evidence gained from the inspection, we have assurance that Wandle’s governance arrangements enable it to effectively manage its risks and adequately control the organisation to deliver its strategic objectives. Wandle’s board appropriately monitors strategic delivery, challenges performance against targets and considers its risk appetite in decision making. We saw evidence that Wandle takes corrective action where there is underperformance, for example introducing a new delivery model for its repairs service. Wandle will need to continue to demonstrate that it can improve its services at the pace needed to ensure better outcomes for tenants.

During the inspection, Wandle demonstrated that it considers alternative options to deliver value for money and make best use of resources, including changes to its corporate structure and the activities it undertakes. We saw evidence that Wandle has a proactive approach to achieving value for money and we gained assurance that its board has considered how it can maximise capacity to invest in existing and new homes.

Wandle maintains clear roles, responsibilities and accountabilities within its leadership and governance structure. There is assurance that its board and committees work in line with delegations and that the board periodically reviews the effectiveness of its governance structure. Wandle’s approach to the continuous improvement of its governance arrangements is demonstrated through the implementation of recommendations from in-depth periodic external effectiveness reviews, the most recent of which was completed in 2025. 

We have assurance that the board has the sufficient skills, capacity and experience to deliver on Wandle’s strategy and oversee risks to delivery. There is a structured approach to developing and appraising skills to support succession planning.

Wandle has an effective risk management and internal controls and assurance framework. We gained assurance that Wandle is proactively strengthening internal controls to bring strategic risks within the organisation’s stated appetite through timebound actions. Reporting provides sufficient detail for the board to have appropriate oversight of the financial and commercial risks associated with Wandle’s structure and activities. We saw evidence of the board’s ownership of stress testing and mitigation strategies to ensure Wandle’s long-term financial plan is resilient to a reasonable range of adverse events.

Viability – V2 – June 2026

Based on the evidence provided during the inspection, we have concluded that we have appropriate assurance that Wandle’s financial plans are consistent with and support the delivery of its strategic objectives. Wandle has provided evidence that it has an adequately funded business plan, sufficient security in place to support its financial plans and is forecast to meet its financial covenants.

There are material risks within Wandle’s financial plan that it will need to manage. Wandle is increasing its investment into building safety remediation, which is putting pressure in the short term on its financial performance and increases reliance on property sales to achieve interest cover covenant compliance.

Stress testing shows that Wandle has the capacity to withstand a reasonable range of adverse economic events with effective mitigation strategies in place. We will continue to engage with Wandle as it delivers its financial plans.

Background to the judgement

About the landlord

According to the 2025 statistical data return Wandle owns 6,783 social homes in South London.

At 31 March 2025 Wandle employed 245 full-time equivalent staff, with a turnover of £64.8m.

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