Awaab's Law Phase 1 Test and Learn Research Report: Lessons and Challenges

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Published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on 13 July 2026, the Phase 1 Test and Learn Research Report examines the early implementation of Phase 1 of Awaab’s Law, which came into force on 27 October 2025.

Its findings are intended to inform the design and implementation of Phases 2 and 3.

The central conclusion of the Report is that Awaab’s Law is beginning to improve the prioritisation, governance and management of serious hazards, but implementation remains inconsistent and vulnerable to workforce, system and capacity pressures.

What has happened since Phase 1?

The research found that Awaab’s Law has already helped raise the profile of damp and mould and emergency hazards within social landlords as intended.

Reported improvements included:

• greater senior leadership and board oversight
• clearer escalation routes for serious hazards
• increased prioritisation of damp and mould cases
• better awareness among frontline staff
• greater focus on vulnerabilities and household circumstances
• changes to policies, processes and IT systems

Importantly, landlords reported that the legislation had helped shift the treatment of damp and mould away from being viewed simply as a routine repair towards a potential health and safety risk requiring timely intervention.

Where are landlords still struggling?

The Report also identifies significant operational challenges.

Workforce capacity and access to suitably skilled staff and contractors remain important concerns. Landlords reported difficulties recruiting surveyors and specialist operatives, while increased inspection requirements have placed additional pressure on existing resources.

Systems are another challenge - some landlords still rely on multiple IT systems that do not communicate effectively, making it difficult to maintain a complete picture of the occupants, property, repair history and hazard.

There are also differences in how landlords interpret and apply concepts such as 'Significant Hazard' and vulnerability, contributing to inconsistency across the sector.

Knowing your residents is critical

One of the most important themes is the need to understand the circumstances of the people living in the home.

A hazard that presents one level of risk to one resident may have much more serious consequences for another because of their age, health, disability or other circumstances.

This means effective compliance increasingly depends on landlords bringing together property information and resident information.

That requires good data, effective communication and frontline staff who know what information to capture and when to escalate concerns.

What does this mean for Phase 2?

This is perhaps the most important question arising from the research.

From 30 November 2026, Phase 2 expands Awaab’s Law beyond damp and mould to include Significant Hazards involving excess cold and heat, falls, structural collapse, fire and explosions, electrical hazards and domestic hygiene.

The findings suggest that landlords cannot simply scale up their existing damp and mould process.

They will need:

• wider hazard recognition across frontline services
• appropriate triage and competent inspection arrangements
• sufficient contractor and specialist capacity
• better integration of resident and property data
• clear ownership and escalation arrangements
• effective assurance that statutory timescales are actually being achieved

The operational challenge is therefore about to become considerably broader.

What does this mean for housing disrepair?

The findings have implications beyond Awaab’s Law itself.

Many of the weaknesses identified in the research, fragmented records, poor diagnosis, workforce shortages, unclear ownership and ineffective communication, are also common causes of housing disrepair complaints and claims.

Therefore, Awaab’s Law provides an opportunity to improve repairs services generally rather than simply create another compliance process.

Landlords that develop stronger hazard triage, inspection, case management and escalation arrangements should also be better placed to prevent ordinary repair problems developing into prolonged disrepair.

Why does this matter?

The Test and Learn Report provides an important early indication that Awaab’s Law is beginning to change landlord behaviour for the better.

That said, the success of the law ultimately depends on the people, processes, technology, data and organisational culture behind the response.

For landlords, the lesson from Phase 1 is to become better at recognising hazards, knowing and understanding residents, assessing risk and coordinating an effective response.

With Phase 2 approaching, the opportunity is to use the learning from the first year to build a more preventative and joined-up approach to Housing Safety before the scope of the legislation expands again.

How can DISREPAIR AWARE help?

Many social and private rented homes are not inspected regularly or maintained properly - we want to help improve housing conditions for everyone.

DISREPAIR AWARE helps:

• tenants and leaseholders to understand their legal rights and get support
• registered providers, private landlords and managing agents to understand their legal obligations and get compliant
  

You can find more news and insights about housing disrepair on our Blog.

Note: This Blog post may be updated from time to time.