Golding Homes Hit with “High Risk” Fire and Electrical Safety Notice
Maidstone’s major social housing provider, Golding Homes, has been slapped with a regulatory notice over “high risk” electrical safety failures. The landlord left more than 100 critical fire risk assessment (FRA) actions incomplete for months, putting tenants in serious danger.
Failings Put Tenants at Risk
Golding Homes manages around 7,000 homes but failed to act on numerous “potentially dangerous” issues, according to the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH). An internal audit flagged “poor” health and safety compliance, prompting the landlord to self-report the problems to the regulator.
The RSH warns these failings could cause serious harm and breach the Home Standard rules requiring landlords to ensure tenant safety. Attempts to get details on how many Maidstone homes are affected or if cladding is involved were met with silence from Golding Homes.
Maidstone Council Demands Action
Maidstone Borough Council’s head of housing, J. Cornall, has informed key council staff of the notice. The Golding Homes Chair assured the council they are urgently working on a fix and will keep in close contact.
“We have been advised by the Chair of Golding Homes that they have received a regulatory notice… They are working swiftly through an action plan to remedy the situation.”
RSH Warns of Serious Harm
Industry mag Inside Housing reports the RSH highlights the risk due to “a large number of tenants potentially exposed to danger from faulty electrical installations over a significant period.”
Golding Homes’ governance rating is now under review. The RSH says it will work with Golding Homes to tackle the issues and safeguard tenants moving forward.
