The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has given Bury Metropolitan Borough Council a C3 consumer grade following an inspection that found serious failings in health and safety, engagement with tenants, and information about services and performance, according to the regulator's announcement. RSH said the council offered limited evidence of meaningful opportunities for tenants to scrutinise performance or influence services, and it had failed to meet the technical and survey requirements of the Tenant Satisfaction Measures. The regulator also said the council could not provide sufficient assurance on the accuracy of its health and safety compliance information, with weaknesses identified in its repairs service, including legal timescales for dealing with hazards such as damp and mould.

RSH noted that improvements were in progress but said processes and systems were still being embedded, and the council could not yet demonstrate consistently better outcomes for tenants. It did find that Bury was reducing a backlog of overdue repairs, improving data quality and planning further service improvements. RSH Deputy Chief Executive Kate Dodsworth said landlords should give tenants meaningful opportunities to scrutinise performance and act on their feedback.

RSH also published stability checks for 19 landlords, including Peabody Trust, Sanctuary Housing Association, The Guinness Partnership, Southern Housing and Hyde Housing Association Limited. Stability checks no longer review governance gradings and focus solely on financial viability, the regulator said. RSH introduced revised consumer standards for social housing landlords on 1 April 2024.