As Awaab’s Law officially came into force last week, social housing providers are entering a new era of accountability.
Officially coming into effect from Monday, 27 October 2025, Awaab’s Law marks a landmark change in how landlords, local councils, and housing associations must address health and safety hazards within social housing. Bid and tender experts Executive Compass say those who adapt quickly will be best placed to win new work, improve tenant trust, and demonstrate leadership in compliance.
The law, introduced following the tragic death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak in 2020, places strict legal timeframes on investigating and addressing serious hazards such as damp and mould, issues that have long challenged the UK’s ageing housing stock.
Under the new regulations, landlords must investigate emergency hazards within 24 hours and potentially significant hazards within 10 working days, followed by written reports and remediation work within tight deadlines. Beyond compliance, the legislation supports wider social value goals by improving living conditions, tenant wellbeing, and long-term housing standards, key themes already embedded in public sector procurement frameworks.
Executive Compass has already seen an uplift in damp and mould remediation tenders since the law was announced, signalling increased demand for compliant, responsive suppliers. Rather than viewing this as a challenge, Executive Compass highlights that the legislation presents an opportunity for providers to improve processes, strengthen tenant trust, and demonstrate high standards of service delivery.
Matthew Walker, Managing Director of Executive Compass, explains that Awaab’s Law will influence how housing providers and suppliers approach future tenders, emphasising clear, efficient, and accountable processes that support both compliance and community outcomes.
“Now that Awaab’s Law is live, housing providers and contractors have a real opportunity to review and enhance their internal procedures,” says Walker. “Ensuring clear processes for investigating, reporting, and resolving hazards will not only support compliance but also improve outcomes for tenants.”
“We’re already seeing an increase in damp and mould remediation tenders as authorities look to demonstrate readiness. For suppliers, this is a chance to show capability, quality assurance and responsiveness in action. Those who can evidence well-structured response plans, transparent reporting, and robust auditing will stand out, not just for compliance, but for their commitment to safer, better housing.”
Executive Compass notes that these new standards will naturally filter through into procurement activity, particularly within damp, mould, and property maintenance frameworks. As a result, suppliers should expect to see greater emphasis on compliance, speed of response, and evidence-based reporting within tender questions.
Executive Compass advises suppliers to strengthen bids by clearly evidencing:
- Resourcing and responsiveness: It is likely that damp and mould tenders will include a question around how you will resource and respond to emergency hazards. To evidence this, consider highlighting the strength of resource, proximity to housing stock and vehicle telematics to further shorten response times to call-outs.
- Health and safety processes: Naturally, housing associations and local councils will expect a robust framework of measures to ensure the health and safety of operatives, tenants and other stakeholders whilst works are taking place.
- Reporting and audit systems: Following investigations and surveys, reports must be of a sufficiently high quality and level of detail, in addition to meeting the required timescales. Software used to produce reports would be beneficial to mention within a response around reporting, in addition to measures for auditing reports to ensure accuracy and compliance.
- Performance measurement: With KPIs mandated by public legislation, authorities will be interested in how performance is benchmarked, monitored and measured, ensuring compliance and facilitating continuous improvement.
“Awaab’s Law has set a new benchmark for accountability and quality within the social housing sector,” Walker continues. “By proactively embedding compliance and clear communication into service delivery and by reflecting that in tender responses, suppliers can strengthen relationships with housing providers and make a measurable difference to resident wellbeing.”
Executive Compass, the UK’s only bid consultancy with a dedicated social value team, adds that social value must sit at the heart of tenders, driving improvements in living conditions and resident wellbeing. Aligning responses to reflect both compliance and community benefit enables suppliers to demonstrate a genuine commitment to safer, healthier homes.
The introduction of Awaab’s Law follows growing government focus on improving living standards in social housing, with further extensions to all Housing Health and Safety Rating System hazards due by 2027.
Executive Compass is already supporting contractors and housing providers to adapt to these changes, helping them evidence compliance effectively, strengthen quality submissions, and secure new opportunities under the updated regulations.
