13.1 Overview of Awaab’s Law regulations

Regulation 1 introduces the Regulations and explains their application including the phased implementation approach.

Regulation 2 defines terms used throughout the Regulations.

Regulation 3 defines “significant hazard” and “emergency hazard”.

Regulation 4 defines “required work” (i.e. work to make the property safe and supplementary preventative work).

Regulation 5 covers the requirements for social landlords to address emergency hazards within 24 hours, including “emergency” investigations.

Regulation 6 covers “standard” investigations – i.e. the investigations that would first take place when a social landlord becomes aware of a potentially significant hazard (unless they think it is potentially an emergency hazard).

Regulation 7 covers “renewed” investigations – which are investigations that must take place in person if a tenant requests it after a standard investigation has concluded.

Regulation 8 covers “further” investigations – which are when a standard, renewed or emergency investigation was unable to determine all the work needed, and a further investigation is required.

Regulation 9 covers the requirement to provide a written summary of findings to tenants after the investigation.

Regulation 10 explains how that summary should be given to tenants.

Regulation 11 is the requirement to complete relevant safety works within 5 working days (more in certain circumstances) if the Regulations require work to address a significant hazard.

Regulation 12 which applies in relation to both significant and emergency hazards, requires a property that has been made safe in accordance with requirements in regulations 5 or 11 to be kept safe until all work required under the Regulations is completed.

Regulation 13 which applies in relation to both significant and emergency hazards, is the requirement to do supplementary preventative work (i.e. any work to prevent as far as possible the hazard from recurring). This does not apply to cladding work.

Regulation 14 requires the social landlord to keep the tenant updated about the timing and progress of required works.

Regulation 15 covers when the requirements to secure suitable alternative accommodation would apply.

Regulation 16 sets out the specific requirements for securing suitable alternative accommodation.

Regulation 17 requires the social landlord to provide safety information if anyone will remain in the property.

Regulation 18 prevents efforts to bypass the requirements in the Regulations.

Regulation 19 provides that if social landlords are found in breach courts can order them to complete actions required under the Regulations.

Regulation 20 provides social landlords with a right of entry for the purposes of compliance with these Regulations at reasonable times of day and on 24 hours’ notice.

Regulation 21 covers circumstances where a social landlord became aware of a relevant issue before the Regulations applied in relation to that issue and that home.

Regulation 22 covers the application of the Regulations where a landlord ceases to be a social landlord or the interest of the landlord is transferred to a person that is not a social landlord.

Regulation 23 specifies that the Regulations must be reviewed at least every 5 years.

13.2 References in this guidance

‘Awaab’s Law’ means the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025.

‘Common parts’ means parts of a building that are for shared use by tenants and other occupiers of the building (such as a hallway in a block of flats).

‘Competent investigator’ means a person that, in the reasonable opinion of the social landlord, has the skills and experience necessary to determine whether a social home is affected by a significant hazard or emergency hazard.

‘Emergency hazard’ means a hazard that presents an imminent and significant risk of harm (see below) to the health or safety of a tenant of the social home.

‘Hazard’ means any risk of harm to the health or safety of an actual occupier of accommodation that arises from a deficiency in the social home or any building or land in the vicinity of the social home and amounting to a hazard under the HHSRS (Excluding overcrowding). A full list of hazards can be found in Schedule 1 to the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) Regulations 2005.

‘Imminent and significant risk of harm’ means a risk of harm to a tenant’s health or safety that a reasonable lessor with the relevant knowledge would take steps to make safe within 24 hours.

‘Potential hazard’ means any issue in a home that could be an emergency or significant hazard, that arises from a deficiency in the social home or any building or land in the vicinity of the social home and is not attributable to a breach of contract by the tenant or to disrepair that the landlord does not have to address because of Section 12 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. In the Regulations potential hazards are referred to as ‘relevant matters’.

‘Relevant Knowledge’ – means the knowledge that the landlord has, or reasonably ought to have about the health and circumstances of the occupiers of a social home.

‘Registered provider (of social housing)’ means a social landlord registered with the Regulator of Social Housing. These may be local authorities or private registered providers of social housing. Also referred to as ‘social landlords’ in this guidance.

‘Repairs’ means any remedial works required under Awaab’s Law.

‘Required works’ means any work in relation to a significant or emergency hazard that is necessary to make the home safe (i.e. to remove the hazard), or to ensure, so far as is possible, that the significant or emergency hazard does not recur. There are some exclusions from this definition which are set out in regulation 4 of the Regulations.

‘Relevant safety work’ means any required work to make a property safe that is not cladding work.

‘Significant hazard’ means a hazard that poses a significant risk of harm (see below) to the health or safety of a tenant of the social home. Examples for damp and mould hazards are at section 13.3.

‘Significant risk of harm’ means a risk of harm to a tenant’s health or safety that a reasonable lessor with the relevant knowledge would take steps to make safe as a matter of urgency.

‘Social home’ means a property that is social housing (but not shared ownership accommodation), let by a registered provider of social housing under a lease to which section 10A of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 applies.

‘Social landlord’ means a local authority social landlord or private registered provider of social housing (such as a housing association registered with the Regulator of Social Housing).

‘Tenant’ includes other occupiers of a home let by a social landlord under a tenancy agreement, except where we refer to the ‘named tenant’ when we mean the person who is party to the tenancy agreement.

‘The Regulations’ means the Hazards in Social Housing (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2025 (also known as Awaab’s Law).

13.3 Further information on damp and mould hazards

The table below provides more technical detail to support triaging of damp and mould hazards. We intend to develop this section further through a ‘test and learn approach, which will expand to include examples of other hazards as further phases of Awaab’s Law are introduced.

This information is not exhaustive and should only be used as a guide: landlords should take steps to understand the individual circumstances of the tenant

Hazard : Damp and Mould

Factors to consider when determining whether a damp/mould hazard poses a significant/emergency risk of harm