Have your say | Launch of Awaab’s Law: consultation on timescales for repairs [CLOSED]

Awaab’s Law*, which was introduced in the landmark Social Housing Regulation Act 2023, requires landlords to investigate and fix reported health hazards such as damp and mould within specified timeframes.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has now launched a consultation is to set those timeframes, and is seeking your views.

In particular, the consultation includes proposals for:  

1. Timescales for initial investigations of potential hazards;  
2. Requirements to be placed upon landlords to provide written summaries of investigation findings; 
3. Timescales for beginning repair works; 
4. Timescales for completing repair works; 
5. Timescales for emergency repairs; 
6. The circumstances under which properties should be temporarily decanted to protect residents’ health and safety; and 
7. Requirements to be placed upon landlords to maintain adequate record keeping throughout repair works. 

The new rules will form part of a tenancy agreement, so tenants can hold landlords to account by law if they fail to provide a decent home.

The consultation closes on 5 March 2024.

The government is inviting responses through an online survey which can be accessed here.

For those who cannot use the online survey, you can also email your response to socialhousingsafety@levellingup.gov.uk. If you are responding in writing, please make it clear which questions you are responding to by stating which question number your response, or each part of your response, relates to.

You can also send in written responses, which should be sent to:

Awaab’s Law Consultation
Social Housing Quality and Residents Division
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
3rd Floor, Fry Building
2 Marsham Street
London
SW1P 4DF

For any enquiries specifically about the consultation please email:  socialhousingsafety@levellingup.gov.uk

*Awaab’s Law was introduced in February 2023, following the death of Awaab Ishak in December 2020. He died as a result of a severe respiratory condition due to prolonged exposure to mould in his home. The tragic death of Awaab brought to light the urgent need to eradicate these hazards from social homes and improve standards across the sector