Bristol City Council

The Housing Ombudsman investigates complaints about social landlords. When it finds a landlord got things wrong, it makes a finding of "maladministration". The most serious failings are "severe maladministration", and lesser ones "service failure".

The 2025-26 performance report. Between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026 the Ombudsman decided 37 Bristol cases, not counting those outside its jurisdiction or withdrawn. It recorded a maladministration rate of 81% — 66 of the 81 findings within its jurisdiction: 4 severe maladministration, 37 maladministration and 25 service failure. The rate counts service failure as well as maladministration.^[3] The national rate was 62%, and 70% for landlords of a similar size and type.^[3]

What the findings were about. The largest category was managing relations — how a landlord deals with its residents, which since 2025-26 includes complaint handling.^[6] It drew 34 findings and a rate of 82%, and complaint handling was the largest single sub-category, with 31 findings.^[3] Two of the four severe findings were about repairs; the disrepair page sets out the repairs and damp and mould findings.^[3]

Orders, compensation and compliance. The Ombudsman made 135 orders and 30 recommendations, and issued 4 complaint handling failure orders. All 135 orders that fell due during the year were complied with. It ordered £26,859 in compensation and recommended £450 more.^[3]

The trend. On the Ombudsman's figures, the council's rate was 60% across 16 decided cases in 2023-24 (as the Ombudsman later restated it), and 78% across 19 in 2024-25.^[3] From October 2025 the Ombudsman examined complaint handling in every case, which it says affects how the 2025-26 rates compare with earlier years.^[6]

The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) checks that social landlords meet the standards for safe, decent homes. It grades landlords with more than 1,000 homes from C1 (the strongest) to C4, through inspections or, as with Bristol in 2024, responsive engagement.^[1]

A grade of C3. On 9 July 2024 the RSH gave Bristol City Council a consumer standards grade of C3. That means it found serious failings and said significant improvement is needed.^[1] The judgement covered the Safety and Quality Standard and around 26,700 social homes, including 62 high-rise buildings.^[1] That is fewer than the 28,878 homes the Housing Ombudsman counted at March 2026.^[3]

What the regulator found. The council had more than 1,900 open damp and mould cases, more than 200 of them over 12 months overdue. It had more than 16,000 outstanding repairs, around half overdue by more than a year.^[1] Over 80% of its stock-condition surveys were more than five years old. It could not evidence a current electrical safety certificate for over 50% of its homes, or that it met the smoke and carbon monoxide alarm rules for more than 85% of them.^[1]

What the council has said and done. Bristol referred itself to the regulator in April 2024 after an external review. The judgement said it was developing an improvement plan under a new programme board, and engaging constructively with the regulator.^[1]

What the council says now. The council says it accepts the findings and is very sorry it fell below the standards.^[5] It now aims to finish the high-risk actions by December 2026 and have all its homes meeting safety and quality standards by March 2027, both later than first planned.^[5] Its July 2026 update reported 3,613 more overdue repairs completed during the period, and 315 gas safety checks overdue. These are the council's own figures.^[5]

An inspection under way. The council says the regulator began an inspection of its housing service in August 2026, including a site visit in November 2026, and that a new grade will follow.^[5] Until the regulator publishes it, the July 2024 judgement is its current view.^[1]

What the grade means for your home. A C3 grade is about the council's homes as a whole. If yours has damp, mould, a leak or an unfixed repair, your rights are separate and still apply.^[1]

Whatever a landlord's track record, its legal duties are the same.

Repairs. Under section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, Bristol City Council must keep the structure and exterior of your home in repair — the roof, walls, windows and doors — and keep the installations for heating, hot water, gas, electricity, water and sanitation in proper working order. This applies to almost every council tenancy and cannot be signed away in a tenancy agreement.

Fitness for human habitation. Under the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018 (section 9A of the 1985 Act), your home must also be fit to live in — free from serious hazards, including damp and mould that could harm your health.

Awaab's Law. Awaab's Law now sets legally binding timescales for social landlords, including councils, to investigate hazards such as damp and mould and make homes safe — the disrepair page sets them out.^[7]

Safety certificates. The council must keep gas and electrical installations safe and certified, and fit and maintain working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.

Where to report and complain. Report a repair by phone or online; the council publishes its own target times for emergency, urgent and standard repairs, which the disrepair page lists.^[10] Make a housing complaint through the council's two-stage complaints process.^[11]