By 
More tenants of housing associations in the Stratford-on-Avon district are taking problems with their homes to the district council. Its Private Sector Housing Team received 204 cases about housing association properties in 2025/26, up from 118 the year before, according to a report going to the council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Wednesday 28 October. At the same meeting, Orbit, which owns many of the district’s social homes, will give councillors an update and take their questions.
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What the figures show
The council’s housing team deals with reports about the condition and safety of rented homes, in both social housing and privately rented homes. Tenants must first give their landlord a reasonable chance to fix the problem.
- 2024/25: 171 cases in total, 118 of them about housing association homes and 45 about private landlords.
- 2025/26: 300 cases, 204 about housing association homes and 82 about private landlords.
- 2026/27 so far: 80 cases, 60 about housing association homes. The report doesn’t give the date these figures run to.
The figures cover all housing associations in the district, not one landlord. The report says many complaints reflect “a misalignment of expectations” rather than service failures. It notes that no category 1 (most serious) hazards were found in housing association homes, and relatively few reports of damp and mould compared with national trends. It also says some residents now raise the same problem through several routes at once, which can double-count issues.
Orbit and the working group
Councillors set up a Housing Associations Working Group in July 2024, after hearing from many tenants in their wards about repairs and communication. The report says Orbit has described “significant improvements” in its local service since a meeting with the group in January, and now runs monthly drop-in clinics where councillors can raise residents’ cases.
The committee is asked to close the working group, invite Orbit back every year, receive a private sector housing report twice a year, and ask all councillors to log complaints from housing association tenants on a new online form, so the council has a clearer picture of the problems.
How to watch or ask a question
- When and where: Wednesday 28 October 2026, 10am, Council Chamber, Elizabeth House, Church Street, Stratford-upon-Avon.
- Watch: the meeting is shown live on the district council’s YouTube channel.
- Ask a question: members of the public can put questions to the committee chair, but notice has to be given in advance. Contact Democratic Services on 01789 260245 or committeemanagers@stratford-dc.gov.uk.
- Papers: the full agenda also covers local government reorganisation, items for the Cabinet on 2 November and a new cost of living review.
Problems with your home?
Report repairs to your landlord first and keep a record. If the problem isn’t fixed, you can contact the district council’s Private Sector Housing Team and, once you’ve been through your landlord’s complaints process, the Housing Ombudsman. More council stories are on our council page.
Alex Harrington
Alex Harrington grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon and runs What's up, Stratford? as an independent guide to the town.
