Housing governance and regulatory products

A suite of interactive online webinars aimed at registered and exempt charities and registered providers of social housing (and their wider group structures) which can be accessed throughout the year. The webinars enable organisations to meet their essential board and senior management team training needs as well as legal and regulatory obligations to receive regular training. They include the following topics:

• directors’ duties and responsibilities;
• implications of being a registered provider of social housing; and
• charity trustees – duties, investment guidance and evidencing independence.

Why?

The housing corporate and governance team at Penningtons Manches Cooper has developed online webinars aimed at registered and exempt charities and registered providers of social housing and their wider group structures. The suite of webinars has been prepared in response to two key issues within the sector:

• the need to evidence that boards and management teams are complying with their legal and regulatory obligations to receive regular training; and
• the increased need for organisations to utilise agile and accessible training practices during the Covid-19 pandemic.

A compliance certificate will be issued on successful completion of each webinar.

Which topics the webinars cover

Directors’ duties and responsibilities

• an overview of fiduciary and codified duties;
• conflicts of interest;
• duties arising from secondary legislation and acts of Parliament;
• breach of duties and liability;
• a situation-based exercise.

Implications of being a registered provider of social housing

• what does it mean to be a registered provider?
• the regulatory standards and codes of practices;
• the regulator’s expectations;
• expectations of registered providers’ board members;
• current key areas of focus and risk within the sector;
• key requirements of the NHF Code of Governance 2020;
• a situation-based exercise.

Charity trustees – duties, investment guidance and evidencing independence

• registered charities vs exempt charities;
• key duties and responsibilities of trustees;
• investments by charities – key considerations;
• evidencing independence;
• a situation-based exercise.

An execution toolkit aimed at registered providers of social housing (and their wider group structures) to ensure organisations are complying with statutory and regulatory requirements when executing legal documents, including electronic execution, deeds and contracts. The toolkit contains an advice note on the requirements as well as a user-friendly checklist to use as a compliance and assurance tool to encourage group-wide compliance with requirements.

Why?

Penningtons Manches Cooper’s housing corporate and governance team has developed an execution requirements toolkit aimed at registered providers of social housing and their wider group structures. The toolkit has been prepared in response to:

• our experience of advising clients who have not been correctly applying, or delegating, the requirements for the proper execution of legal documentation;
• increased scrutiny of execution arrangements from third parties (particularly funders and the Land Registry) which have highlighted errors;
• the growing need for organisations to adopt agile governance practices triggered by the strict lockdown measures during the current pandemic.

This toolkit will enable organisations to ensure they have complied with statutory and regulatory requirements when executing legal documents including:

• the execution requirements related to the corporate structure of the organization;
• how to delegate authority to other individuals to execute documents on behalf of the organization;
• electronic execution of documents; and
• the specific execution requirements that relate to:
  • contracts;
  • deeds;
  • Land Registry requirements; and
  • guarantees.

What the toolkit includes

The toolkit comprises:

• a review of your organization’s existing governance documentation specifically in relation to execution requirements;
• an advice note on your existing execution options, the relevant legal obligations and recommendations to ensure a more streamlined approach to execution in the future;
• user-friendly execution checklists that can be tailored for each entity in your wider group to ensure group-wide compliance with execution and electronic signature requirements; and
• optional interactive training on execution requirements for added board and executive assurance.

A fixed fee service designed for smaller registered providers of social housing to ensure that their rules are up to date with current good practice, the law, and how they work. The amendments will be based on the latest version of the National Housing Federation’s Model Rules 2015.

Why?

Knowledge of what is in an association’s constitution is a fundamental element of good governance, not least because it sets out its objects and the powers that it has to achieve them. A board or committee that takes action which is not within the ambit of its association’s objects and powers is acting unlawfully, and opens itself up to regulatory investigation.

It is crucial to both understand the constitution and ensure it reflects current good practice, the law, and how the association works. Many smaller housing associations are currently using rules that are old and out of date. Some of these were written in ‘legalese’ and are difficult to interpret. Most of them will not represent current best practice.

The solution is to update these rules to the latest version of the National Housing Federation’s model: the NHF Model Rules 2015. These are well laid out and are an easy-to-read document that is an excellent foundation for a governance structure. It is therefore no surprise that they are the constitution of choice for the majority of housing associations of all sizes.

Our housing corporate and governance team has extensive governance experience and a deep understanding of the intricacies of the NHF rules and needs of housing associations. The team can guide associations through the process quickly and efficiently.

What the package includes

Our comprehensive service ensures a smooth change to the NHF Model Rules 2015 by:

• reviewing existing rules and highlighting the changes needed to align with the NHF Model Rules;
• drafting a new set of rules based on the NHF Model Rules, incorporating any specific required changes;
• explaining the process for changing these rules in a report to the housing association’s board;
• preparing and guiding the association through the documents required to adopt the new rules;
• helping to register the new rules at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and formally notifying the Social Housing Regulator (SHR) in accordance with their regulatory requirements; and
• providing ongoing support throughout the entire process.

Our fixed fee for advising smaller housing associations on a complete change of their rules to the NHF Model Rules 2015 is £1,250 plus VAT and includes all the services above.