Discussions around the meaning of professionalism and the importance of qualifications in the housing and property sector never dissipates, now, on the back of mandatory qualifications for those working in social housing in England being introduced, could this be the start of ‘professionalism’ in the sector for all of the UK?
Earlier this year, Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities proposed to give ministers the power to prevent those working in the management of social housing in England, unless they had “appropriate” professional qualifications or satisfied “specified requirements”- the intention being to “drive up standards” and “professionalise” the sector.
Mandatory qualifications in England
The Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023, which received Royal Assent in July 2023, introduced these powers, making it a requirement for senior housing executives and senior housing managers to have a relevant housing management qualification at OFQUAL level 4 or higher.
Potentially, the Act could be one of the most influential pieces of legislation to affect housing, property standards, qualifications and education. Although the requirements are only relevant in England, the rest of the UK will be watching with interest and assessing whether these mandatory housing qualifications are having the desired effect.
Not only will it be those operating in the affordable housing sector looking on, there has always been an appetite from property managers, factors, estate agents and letting agents (in England) to have their profession considered professional and if these regulations are making a marked difference, undoubtedly, we will see pressure from other parts of the housing and property sector to have the equivalent level of professionalism bestowed on them.
The Act is, on the whole, designed to initiate a more robust form of regulation in England; an area where the framework in Scotland, together with the approach of the Scottish Housing Regulator, is considered strides ahead, however, there are concerns this one-size-fits all approach to mandatory learning leaves many areas ignored.
Customer service failings
Following the inquest into the tragic death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who passed away from a respiratory condition caused by excessive mould in the property he lived, despite his parents raising their concerns with their landlord on many occasions, was a key trigger in these regulations being introduced. However, what we do have to ask is how introducing this blanket approach to professionalisation and introducing housing qualifications will help address these failings to ensure they never occur again?
Housing is a wide and varied sector; there are many functions not specifically housing related that support the delivery of services, such as finance, corporate governance, business support and customer connections. All of these roles should not be dismissed from professionalisation allowing the staff that work dedicatedly within them to carry out their role to the best of their abilities, as well as offering career advancement.
It is evident that one single qualification will not meet the needs of an ever evolving and sometime complex housing sector, and shoehorning professionals into qualifications that will not provide some with the skills and knowledge they actually require, is not the best use of their already strained time or limited training budgets.
It has been argued that customer service training would go a long way for many in the housing sector, rather than a generic qualification, with the failings witnessed in the Awaab Ishak case undoubtedly rooted in an egregious failure of customer service. Again, this is not an issue that will necessarily be resolved by insisting that everyone gains one particular type of qualification.
Professionalism in the housing sector
Although many hard-working housing professionals may feel a little wounded by Michael Gove’s suggestion that they need to “professionalise”, there is merit in wearing our competence on our sleeve.
With budget cuts forcing other sectors that provide community support to retreat, housing professionals are dealing with more varied and complex cases. And now we are seeing the detrimental effect it is having, with many housing officers speaking out about stresses the job brings, being overwhelmed, left without sufficient support or training, and reluctantly, beginning a desperate search for jobs outside the sector.
A professional housing qualification will certainly offer individuals a more structured and comprehensive way to learn about the housing sector, providing a solid foundation of knowledge and skills that can help them to succeed in their careers. However, notwithstanding the costs involved, at present the choice of qualification is limited and time-consuming to complete.
So how do we exemplify professionalism without everyone being forced down the same path?
Perhaps taking a more pragmatic approach and considering how the model has worked for other professions such as the legal profession, surveyors and the regulation of letting agents in Scotland. Not only do they have a variety of qualifications to undertake, there is a mandatory requirement for continuing professional development (CPD).
The Law Society of Scotland rules state that to retain a practising certificate, solicitors must undertake 20 hours of continuing professional development per practise year; 15 of these hours must be verifiable, the other 5 may be from private study. The law society does not stipulate the topics, the format or the provider, but does provide guidance for what the hours of CPD must achieve.
If they want to continue in their profession, solicitors must evidence they have undertaken the required hours. Not only is there a requirement to record and reflect on their training, but solicitors are encouraged to plan it out at the start of the year. A wise tactic, that prevents the scatter gun approach to training that others seem to undertake.
Similarly, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) have a mandatory requirement of 20 CPD hours annually. Of this 10 must be formal with the remainder informal, clear guidance is provided by the RICS on what they consider as informal. In addition to the CPD, all members must maintain a relevant and current understanding of the professional and ethical standards during a rolling three-year period.
Letting agents managing properties in Scotland have to meet the Scottish Government’s CPD requirement of 20 hours (15 of which must be verifiable), however, this is over a 3-year period. It may seem less stringent than other professions, nevertheless the benefits to this element of the sector should not be underestimated, with the CIH recently finding improvements in practitioner practice from those with a housing qualification and undertaking mandatory CPD.
The approach taken by these professions seems more advantageous than found in the 2023 regulations.
What could be considered a serious oversight of these regulations is that it is too prescriptive, in mandating that only senior housing executives and senior housing managers require to be qualified this will undoubtedly see many organisations simply focus on their legislative requirements. The knock-on effect will be the needs of those who may want training or qualifications, such as frontline and customer facing staff, will become insignificant.
Obtaining a qualification and working in the sector does not guarantee an individual’s knowledge is where it should be or that they are sympathetic to issues that perhaps were not evident when they took their studies. Adopting a rolling CPD requirement means that professionals will continue learning and that will more than likely frame the topic in terms of the issues society is facing, resulting in more informed and well-rounded professionals.
Qualifications and personal development
As the 2023 Act was making its way through Parliament, SHARE supported an element for housing qualifications to be included, and, despite the limitations that have been introduced, they are still welcomed. SHARE would welcome a more robust framework being introduced in Scotland.
Being an accredited centre, offering a variety of qualifications and training, SHARE welcomes a great deal of housing professionals every year. What is clearly evident as they develop their skill set and increase their knowledge, is that ‘housing professionals’ already exist, the hard work and dedication to the sector is already there for all to see.
The powers that should acknowledge this dedication and rather than instil restrictive routes to qualification and personal growth, they should look to help by putting mechanisms in place that offer all organisations and ‘housing professionals’ the opportunity of continued development – not only will this see individuals flourish, but tenants, residents and customers will reap the rewards by receiving the best possible service levels.
