Mystery machine to snoop on social landlords

A campervan was the mobile office for Tenant Services Authority staff when they came to Kent this week.

Members of the new regulatory body, set up in December as a watchdog for social housing, pulled up in Margate and Ramsgate as part of the National Conversation campaign to ask tenants what they think of the quality of service they get from their landlord.

Information gathered by the TSA will be used to help it to create a standards framework against which all councils and housing associations will be measured.

As of December 1, 2009, the TSA, backed by the Housing Regulation Act 2008, will be able to check on how landlords are performing and if necessary take action against those who are not up to standard.

After all the regulation that private landlords have had to face it's reassuring that social landlords are also under the cosh. The jury is out as to whether the TSA turns out to be another toothless wonder.