Ministerial foreword

The tragic death of Awaab Ishak shocked the nation. The death of a child is always heart-breaking – the more so when it is entirely preventable. Awaab was aged just two when he died in December 2020, as a direct result of exposure to mould in the social home his family rented from Rochdale Boroughwide Housing. His parents raised concerns about their living conditions time and again. The landlord not only repeatedly failed to act, but shamefully blamed the family for causing the hazardous mould.

As the Coroner’s ruling into Awaab’s death makes plain, landlord’s must take residents’ concerns about health and safety seriously. The government’s new guidance on the health risks of damp and mould for landlords states that residents should not be blamed for its presence in their homes, and mould in homes must not be pinned on ‘lifestyle choices’ – cooking a meal, having a hot shower and putting clothes out to dry are not discretionary activities but part and parcel of living in your home. It is therefore rightly the responsibility of landlords to identify and address underlying causes, such as structural issues or inadequate ventilation.

Everyone deserves to live in a home that is decent, safe and secure. Awaab’s Law, which was introduced in the landmark Social Housing Regulation Act 2023, requires landlords to investigate and fix reported health hazards within specified timeframes. The primary purpose of this consultation is to set those timeframes, and I hope to hear views from across the sector. The new rules will form part of a tenancy agreement, so that tenants can hold landlords to account by law if they fail to provide a decent home.

Awaab’s parents have sought justice for their son – and all residents of social housing – with dignity and courage. The petition for Awaab’s Law was launched by his parents with Manchester Evening News and Shelter, and their campaign means that tenants will now have the law on their side when landlords fail them and see their living standards improve.

Awaab’s Law is part of the biggest government reforms affecting social housing in a decade. Since 2010, there has been a steady improvement in the quality of social housing with a reduction in the proportion of non-decent social rented homes from 20% in 2010 to 10% in 2021.^{[footnote 1]} The latest English Housing Survey data, published in July 2023, found that damp and mould affect 177,000 social homes – but residents face other severe problems.^{[footnote 2]} BRE, the built environment research body, estimates that around 217,000 social rented homes are blighted by a range of dangerous health and safety hazards.^{[footnote 3]} The people who live in them, and suffer the consequences, require treatment by the NHS that costs around £65 million a year.

Our Levelling Up White Paper pledged to reduce non-decency in rented homes by 50% by 2030. Awaab’s Law will contribute to this mission by making sure that social housing landlords are taking swift action on the assessment and remedy of the most serious hazards.

Together, these reforms give residents in social housing properties a stronger and louder voice. Everyone deserves to live in good quality homes and to have routes to redress if or when things go wrong.

The Rt Hon Michael Gove MP
Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities