The Housing Ombudsman Service published a revised Complaint Handling Code in October 2026, replacing the 2022 edition. The Code sets mandatory minimum standards for how social landlords — including local authorities and registered providers (housing associations) — must handle resident complaints. Compliance became legally required under the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023.
Key changes in the 2026 edition. The revised Code introduces: (1) a mandatory "Stage 1" response within 10 working days (previously 10 calendar days, creating inconsistency); (2) a new requirement to offer a meeting with a senior manager at Stage 2 for complaints involving significant service failure; (3) explicit requirements to consider all forms of redress — including apology, explanation, remedial action, and financial compensation — at each stage; and (4) a new obligation to publish an annual complaints performance and service improvement report reviewed by the landlord's governing body.
What this means for tenants. If your social landlord fails to respond within the timescales in the Code, or provides inadequate redress, you can escalate to the Housing Ombudsman once you have completed the landlord's own two-stage process. The Ombudsman can order financial compensation, require policy changes, and (for serious maladministration) refer landlords to the Regulator of Social Housing. Private tenants renting from private landlords are not covered by this Code — see instead the deposit return guide and the Renters' Rights Bill news item for private tenant rights. The compliance deadline for the new Code is 1 April 2027.