Awaab's Law: what social landlords need from their contractors

Awaab Ishak was two years old when he died in December 2020. He lived with his parents in a housing association flat in Rochdale. The coroner found that his death resulted from a severe respiratory condition caused by "prolonged exposure to mould in his home environment". Her report records that the landlord was told about mould in 2017 and that Awaab's father was advised to paint over it. An inspection in July 2020 confirmed mould in the kitchen and bathroom, but nothing had been done to treat it by the time he died. Awaab's Law carries his name. It changes what social landlords must do, and so what they need from their contractors, when a home may be harming the people in it.

What the law now requires

The rules are in the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025, in force since 27 October 2025. They cover all emergency hazards, and damp and mould that poses a significant risk to health or safety, in homes let by councils and housing associations in England. The clock starts when the landlord becomes aware of a possible hazard.

• Emergency hazards: investigate and make the home safe within 24 hours.
• Other possible significant hazards: investigate within 10 working days.
• Tell the tenant in writing what was found, and what happens next, within 3 working days of the investigation ending.
• Where a significant hazard is found, finish the work to make the home safe within 5 working days of the investigation.
• Start any further work needed to stop the hazard returning within 5 working days or, if that is not practicable, within 12 weeks, and finish it within a reasonable time.
• If the home cannot be made safe in time, arrange suitable alternative accommodation at no cost to the household, unless the tenant declines it.

Draft regulations now before Parliament would extend the same timescales from 30 November 2026 to excess cold and heat, falls, structural collapse, fire and explosions, electrical hazards and domestic hygiene. A final phase, which government guidance places in 2027, would add the remaining hazards in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, apart from overcrowding.

The scale of the problem

The English Housing Survey found damp in 7% of social rented homes in 2024: 8% of council homes and 6% of housing association homes. The Housing Ombudsman's review of 2025–26 says 34% of the repairs complaints it investigated were about condensation, damp and mould, and that it upheld over three-quarters of its damp, mould and leak cases. It ordered £1.1 million in compensation on damp and mould alone, and warned that early cases suggest some landlords' complaint teams are struggling to recognise Awaab's Law cases and respond in time.

Fast is not the same as fixed

In our view the deadlines are the easiest part to measure, and the easiest part to meet badly. Cleaning off mould and leaving a dehumidifier can be a sensible first step, and the guidance accepts it as one. It is not a repair. The regulations say the work must make the home safe and, as far as possible, stop the hazard coming back. The guidance is specific: where damp and mould come from missing ventilation or poor insulation, the landlord must put that right, for example with mechanical ventilation or effective insulation.

Awaab's case shows why. The coroner noted a bathroom fan that did not work effectively, no mechanical ventilation in the kitchen, no bathroom window, and a kitchen window that opened onto a communal walkway. She was clear that the cooking, washing, bathing and drying of clothes that added to the damp were ordinary daily life. The guidance tells landlords not to assume that damp and mould are down to a tenant's lifestyle.

What landlords should expect from contractors

Landlords remain fully responsible for compliance when they use contractors, and the guidance suggests checking contractor agreements against the new duties. It expects contractors to treat tenants with respect, answer their questions, know the deadlines and pass on what the written summary needs without delay. We agree, and would go further. Landlords should expect:

• Visits at times that suit the household, confirmed beforehand, with contact details left if nobody is in.
• A diagnosis by someone competent to make it, naming the source: condensation, a leak, a roof or gutter defect, rising or penetrating damp, or a failed extract fan.
• Safety first, then the cause: mould treated straight away, followed by the repairs, ventilation or insulation that stop it returning.
• Work that does not swap one hazard for another. New ventilation, for example, must not damage fire compartmentation.
• Care in occupied homes: belongings protected, dust controlled, the home left clean, and residents told what is happening each day.
• Anything else spotted on the visit reported to the landlord, including safeguarding concerns, because what a contractor knows may sometimes count as what the landlord knows.

Reports landlords can act on

Within three working days the tenant must be told whether a hazard was found, what it is, what will be done and when, or why nothing more is needed, and how to contact the landlord. The landlord must then keep the tenant updated, which is impossible without prompt, plain reporting from site. Every report should cover what was found and where, the likely cause, photographs and readings, what was done on the day, what further work is needed and when, and what to check afterwards. It should make as much sense to the resident as to the asset manager. Good records protect landlords too: if a tenant brings a claim, the landlord has to show it did everything reasonable to comply.

How we work

We are a principal contractor based in Barnet, in business for over a decade, working for councils and housing associations across Greater London. Most of our work is done by our own directly employed trades, recruited locally from Barnet and North London, and a site manager supervises every job. So in most cases the people at a resident's door are ours, and so is the standard of what they leave behind. If the extension goes ahead in November, contractors will need to handle more than mould: the guidance expects electrical hazards, for instance, to be dealt with by a qualified, competent electrician. Our accreditations are Gas Safe Register, NICEIC, Constructionline, Competent Roofer and CHAS Elite.

Awaab's Law is a safety net. Better still is a home that never comes near it: the first report acted on, the cause fixed, and residents told honestly what happens next.

Sources

1. legislation.gov.uk — The Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025 (2025)
2. legislation.gov.uk — Draft Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (2026)
3. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government — Awaab's Law: Guidance for social landlords (2026)
4. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government — Awaab's Law Phase 2: Guidance for social landlords (2026)
5. Courts and Tribunals Judiciary — Awaab Ishak: Prevention of future deaths report (2022)
6. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government — English Housing Survey 2024 to 2025: housing quality (2026)
7. Housing Ombudsman — Annual Complaints Review 2025-26 (2026)