The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) is the main framework that local authorities use to assess health and safety hazards in homes and to decide what action to take under the Housing Act 2004.
It has now had its first significant update since it came into force in 2006. A key aim of the reform is not to change the underlying risk-based approach of the HHSRS, but to make it easier for assessors to apply and easier for landlords and tenants to understand.
The Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 were made and laid before Parliament on 1 June 2026 and came into force on 23 June 2026, alongside new statutory guidance.
This guidance explores what has changed, what that means in practice, and how it connects to wider regulation and policy around housing quality, safety, and decency.
For social landlords in particular, the HHSRS is often encountered through the Decent Homes Standard, Awaab's Law and consumer regulation. Although it remains the statutory framework for assessing housing-related health and safety hazards across all tenures.
For further information
The full statutory guidance is available here.
For any questions on this briefing, please get in touch with the CIH policy and practice team at policyandpractice@cih.org.
