Everyone deserves to live in a home that is safe, secure and well-maintained. Awaab’s Law, introduced as part of the Social Housing Regulation Act 2023, sets legally binding timeframes for landlords to investigate and fix health hazards such as damp and mould. With the law coming into effect in October, social landlords and housing providers must ensure they have robust compliance processes in place to meet these new standards.
Managing compliance is a critical yet complex responsibility for professionals in housing and support services. The stakes are high – balancing regulatory requirements, resident safety, and operational efficiency can stretch internal teams.
In this article, we talk to Simon Powell, Head of IT & Performance at Inspire North, who recently shared his experience of working with CDPSoft and how it transformed their approach to compliance and property management.
The Compliance Challenge
Before implementing CDPSoft’s solution, Simon and his team at Inspire North were already committed to high compliance standards but faced limitations with their legacy system. While it allowed for basic data capture, it lacked the sophistication needed for seamless audit readiness and proactive compliance tracking. As Simon explained:
“It’s not enough just to say, yes, we’ve done it, we need evidence. You need to see the actions taken. You need to see the certificates; you need to see the reports.”
Without built-in workflows to centralise compliance actions, maintaining full visibility of crucial checks required additional effort. External audits added further pressure, increasing the administrative load on already stretched teams.
The CDPSoft Solution
Recognising the need for a more streamlined and proactive approach, Inspire North partnered with CDPSoft to enhance their compliance processes. With a focus on flexibility and usability, CDPSoft’s solution was tailored to their organisational needs. A key part of this was the implementation of the Forms Module alongside the Periodics Module—features that transformed how compliance tasks were recorded, managed, and evidenced.
Simon now refers to the overall compliance function as his ‘Periodic Module,’ highlighting how the system has embedded compliance into day-to-day operations. This is just one of the many ways the Forms Module can be utilised to manage complex operational challenges, from applications and risk management to client-related workflows.
Enhanced Data Capture for Periodic Checks and Inspections
Simon leveraged the Forms Module to create workflows that allowed staff to:
– Record comprehensive compliance data beyond simple yes/no responses.
– Upload supporting evidence, such as certificates and reports, directly into the system.
This level of detail ensured Inspire North was audit-ready at all times. Simon shared, “Now we’ve got a solution where, yes, we’ve got the compliance, and we can evidence it easily.”
Flexibility in Managing Compliance and Audit
The Forms Module provided the flexibility Simon’s team needed to adapt workflows for their 14 key areas of property compliance checks. This adaptability allowed them to:
– Design forms tailored to specific compliance needs.
– Adjust processes as regulatory requirements evolve.
Simon noted, “The flexibility of the Forms tool has been a game-changer for us. We can create solutions quickly and efficiently.”
Proactive Compliance Management and Workload Planning
One standout feature was the module’s ability to forewarn of upcoming compliance checks, ensuring no deadlines were missed. Automating these reminders saved time and reduced stress for staff. Automatic escalation occurs if the warning thresholds are triggered.
Results That Matter
The partnership between CDPSoft and Inspire North delivered tangible results:
- Audit Success with Confidence:
Comprehensive documentation and supporting evidence ensured Inspire North met compliance requirements and passed external audits with ease. - Efficiency, including Time & Cost Saving:
Automating compliance workflows reduced administrative burdens, freeing up staff for client-focused activities. - Empowering Teams with Smarter Compliance Tools:
Simon’s team gained the confidence and tools to manage the system independently, fostering long-term success.
Simon summarised the impact of CDPSoft’s solution, saying,
“Recognising the importance of efficiency and how technology could support my colleagues, we saw the need for a system that ensured we remained compliant in our 14 key areas of periodic checks. With the module, we now have a comprehensive solution that lets us evidence compliance extremely efficiently”
Beyond Compliance: Forms for Every Need
While Inspire North uses the Forms Module to manage periodic compliance checks, this is just one of its many applications. The module’s flexibility allows organisations to streamline operations, automate workflows, and reduce administrative tasks across various departments. Forms can be deployed for any operational need from customers to services/providers, accounts/contracts, users and more.
Examples of how Forms can be used include:
- Client Forms:
Needs assessments, risk & safeguarding, support/care plans, and homelessness and / or rough sleeper assessments. - Property & Address Forms:
Decent Homes Standards, damp and mould records, asset registers, void inspections and even Ofsted inspections (for accommodation providers for 16-17 year olds). - Service Forms:
Incident tracking and management, daily compliance checks, commissioner returns, and risk management. - Contract Forms:
Contract monitoring, audit compliance, performance form and default procedures. - Feedback Forms:
Complaints, satisfaction surveys, and peer reviews. - User Forms:
Training records, supervision overviews, and employee compliance checks.
Tailored Benefits for All Users
- For Commissioners:
Ensure seamless reporting, governance, and visibility with providers by customising forms to meet specific compliance and reporting requirements. - For Senior Management:
Receive automated escalations and instant access to critical compliance data, allowing for proactive decision-making without the need to chase teams for updates. - For Teams:
Simplify day-to-day operations, reducing paperwork and ensuring timely updates on client care while maintaining compliance. - For IT Professionals:
Gain full control over how data is captured, reported, and used to drive efficiency without relying on external developers.
Why CDPSoft?
For professionals in local authority or service provider environments, CDPSoft offers more than just a software solution. It’s a trusted partner that understands the challenges of compliance management and delivers tools designed to meet them head-on. With a collaborative implementation process and flexible, proactive systems, CDPSoft empowers organisations to focus on their core mission: supporting clients.
Simon Powell’s final words capture the value of this partnership:
“We needed our system to show and evidence that we’re complying, both from a legal point of view and with client safety at the top of the list.
CDPSoft delivered that and more.”
Simon Powell, Head of IT & Performance at Inspire North