Two years ago we set out on a mission to better tackle damp and mould in our homes as part of our journey to become a truly resident-focused organisation providing high-quality homes and services.
We have made important progress in that time and over recent months have redoubled our work in preparation for Awaab’s Law, which is being implemented from today.
In the last financial year, we visited 79.9% of homes within 10 days of a report of damp and mould, compared to 71.5% in the previous year, while we also sent out around 11,000 messages to residents who had current or historic cases of damp and mould to ensure work had been completed and the issue resolved.
From this, 1,156 damp and mould repairs were raised, 239 of which came from households with at least one resident with a vulnerability. All but one of those have been resolved, and that remaining case is linked to a larger, more complex repair that we are actively dealing with.
Other actions we’ve taken to prepare for Awaab’s Law include:
- Establishing a dedicated damp and mould team to take responsibility for day-to-day case progression, including dealing with high-risk cases and escalating issues when necessary
- Developing a new resident-focused damp and mould policy, which involved commissioning an external audit to evaluate our current service and identify areas for improvement. The policy was co-produced with residents and aligns with the requirements of Awaab’s Law
- Visiting 32,186 (81%) of our social homes in the past 12 months, alongside actively surveying 4,423 homes since April 2025 through independent stock condition surveys
- Rolling out detailed staff training on damp and mould at all levels, which has been embedded into day-to-day routines to drive continuous improvement
- Enhancing our use of technology to ensure full visibility of damp and mould cases from first report to post-inspection, and installing smart devices in homes, with resident approval, to provide key data on the risk of mould growth
To support with this, we have expanded the capacity of our contractors to ensure we have the skilled workers needed to deliver improvements to our residents, backed up by enhanced key performance indicators and service level agreements.
This means we can respond quickly to increased demand for emergency investigations, repairs and remediation work.
Such is the impact of our work, we now have zero open or outstanding cases classified as “category one” in the Housing Health and Safety Rating System. We also saw the number of homes affected by damp and mould drop from 2,635 to 1,678 between June 2024 and October 2025.
While we are committed to continued improvement, preventing damp and mould is also something residents can play a part in, so to find some resources to help you do this – including our “managing condensation and mould” leaflet - visit our dedicated damp and mould page.
Chyrel Brown, chief customer officer, said:
“The changes introduced by Awaab’s Law are hugely important and we are fully supportive of the government bringing in this vital legislation. We are committed to ensuring our residents live in safe, comfortable homes and dealing with issues in a timely manner when they arise.
“While we have made strong progress, we know we have much more to do and, as such, will continue to refine and improve our approach, systems and processes as we adapt to the requirements of Awaab’s Law now and into the future.”
Residents who have a problem with damp and mould in their home that they are unable to manage should call our dedicated telephone line on 020 8451 8001 or report it via MyAccount. Meanwhile, any MP or councillor with casework relating to damp and mould, or any other issue, should contact member.enquiries@nhg.org.uk.
Find out more
Experts agree that with proper ventilation, insulation and heating, condensation can be avoided or reduced. Here are some tips on how to do this.
Do you need more help?
If you have a problem with condensation or mould in your home that you cannot manage, you can now call our dedicated telephone line 020 8451 8001 (available Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm). Alternatively, contact your housing officer/property management officer via My Account.
