Uncoordinated regulation of shared accommodation for ‘vulnerable people’

I’ll fess up: as the father of an autistic son in supported living  in a Housing Association multi-unit property, I had no idea that my son’s housing was regulated by the Homes and Communities Agency. I noted  the following exchange (Parliamentary Question and Answer) and thought ‘Why, when it comes  to learning disability, is every aspect of provision and regulation so complicated?’ (The phrase ‘Byzantine complexity’ just won’t go away). So let’s hope the Minister and/or the CQC keep their word and we end up with ‘a more targeted, responsive and collaborative approach’…

Asked by Kwasi Kwarteng (Spelthorne)
Asked on: 03 February 2017
Shared Housing: Regulation
 
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether the Government plans to introduce regulatory proposals for bodies which manage shared accommodation in which vulnerable people are housed.
 
Answered by: Mr Marcus Jones, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Communities and Local Government)
Answered on: 13 February 2017
The Government understands the importance of protecting the most vulnerable in our society.

Housing is regulated differently dependent on the form of support provided. Social housing provided by Housing Associations is regulated by the Homes and Communities Agency, registered Care Homes are inspected by the Care Quality Commission.

Houses of Multiple Occupancy in the private rental sector are, where appropriate, licensed by the local authority, and we are proposing changes to widen mandatory licensing of large Houses of Multiple Occupancies.

As part of our consultation on the future funding of supported housing, the Government is considering how further to improve oversight and assurance for vulnerable adults living in supported housing. As part of the Care and Quality Commission’s next phase of regulation consultation, the Care and Quality Commission is looking to make changes to its regulation of providers to use a more targeted, responsive and collaborative approach to meet the emerging new care models.