Awaab's Law Phase 2 takes effect in England on 30 November 2026. For housing association repairs teams and their contractors, preparation needs to reach beyond a policy update. It needs to be clear to the operative at the door, the coordinator receiving a call and the landlord deciding what happens next.
From our side of the repairs service, the practical question is straightforward: if someone notices a potential hazard beyond the repair they were sent to complete, does everyone know what to do with that information?
The answer should not depend on who happens to be working that day. Phase 2 preparation is an opportunity to check that the route from observation to action is understood, usable and properly connected to the landlord's arrangements.
Agree the process before the visit
The landlord's legal responsibilities are not transferred simply by appointing a repairs contractor. But the contractor's actions and information can help the landlord assess a concern and meet those responsibilities. The working arrangements between the two need to support that.
For us, that means agreeing more than a reporting email address. Before the change takes effect, landlord and contractor teams should be clear about:
- Where an operative reports a concern outside the original job.
- Who receives it and who decides the next action.
- How an urgent concern is escalated if the usual contact is unavailable.
- What making-safe work is authorised and who arranges specialist support.
- How receipt, responsibility and follow-on work are confirmed.
These arrangements should work during normal appointments and through the agreed out-of-hours route. A process that relies on one named person being available is too fragile for day-to-day delivery.
Look beyond the job without guessing
An operative attending a faulty door or a leaking tap may notice something else that needs attention. That does not turn every responsive repair visit into a full property inspection. It does mean the original job description should not become a reason to ignore a visible concern or something the resident reports.
The distinction is between noticing and diagnosing. Operatives should describe what they have seen, heard or checked, within their competence. They should not be expected to make an unsupported technical diagnosis or decide the legal classification of every concern at the doorstep.
Residents can also provide relevant information about how long a problem has been present, whether it is changing and how it affects use of the home. Record that as the resident's account, separately from the operative's observations. Both can help the landlord decide what assessment is needed.
Give the landlord information it can use
A useful report allows the receiving team to understand the concern without having to start again. A vague note such as 'other issue found' creates another enquiry before anyone can decide what to do.
The agreed record should capture:
- The location and nature of the concern, using plain, specific language.
- When it was observed and what the resident reported.
- Clear photographs showing the detail and enough context to locate it.
- Any checks or immediate action completed, including their limits.
- Who was told, through which route, and whether receipt was confirmed.
Photographs should follow the agreed information-handling process and avoid unnecessary personal details. They support the written record; they do not replace an explanation of what the operative found.
Crucially, taking photographs is not the same as notifying the landlord. Information saved against a job can still be missed if it does not reach the team responsible for assessing and acting on it.
Escalate promptly and make safe within competence
Where there is an immediate safety concern, uploading a note and moving to the next appointment is not an adequate response. The operative needs to use the agreed urgent route, explain the situation clearly and follow the appropriate safety procedure.
Making safe must stay within the operative's competence, authorisation and safe working arrangements. Where specialist attendance is needed, that should be escalated rather than improvised. The resident should receive a clear explanation of any immediate precautions, without promises about work or appointments that have not been agreed.
The applicable regulations set requirements, and the landlord's policy and contract procedures need to support them. Contractors should work to the agreed timescales without treating a local policy as a substitute for the regulations. Where instructions are unclear or conflict, the issue needs resolving promptly, not interpreting differently on each visit.
Keep the original repair and the new concern connected
Completing the booked repair should not make a separate concern disappear from view. The records need to distinguish between the original job being finished, an immediate risk being made safe and any further assessment or permanent work still required.
A useful readiness check is to walk through a realistic example with the landlord's team. Can an operative raise an additional concern? Can the coordinator see it? Does someone acknowledge responsibility? Can both teams identify the next action without searching through disconnected messages?
That is the practical contractor contribution to Phase 2: notice concerns, describe them accurately, pass them through the right route and act safely within the agreed arrangements. For the housing associations we work with, those connections matter as much as the quality of the individual repair.
Talk to our team about the reporting and escalation arrangements your repairs service needs.