What records will supported housing licensing need?
What the draft Supported Housing (Licensing) (England) Regulations 2027 and the six National Supported Housing Standards mean for the records a supported housing provider keeps, condition by condition and resident by resident.
Supported housing licensing will need records that show each licence condition is met: a needs assessment for every resident on moving in or within four weeks, a person-centred support plan with agreed outcomes, reviewed on time, signed records of the support given, evidence residents know their rights and can complain, safe and well-kept housing, trained staff and sound safeguarding, and a statement of purpose for each scheme. These come from the draft Supported Housing (Licensing) (England) Regulations 2027, published for consultation on 15 October 2026, and the six National Supported Housing Standards they make into licence conditions.
Licensing is not yet in force and is not expected before 2027, but the records take months to get right across every resident. Providers that start now will be ready on the first day.
The licence conditions and the records behind them
| Draft licence condition | Records that show it is met |
|---|---|
| Meet the National Supported Housing Standards | The records for each of the six standards, below |
| Assess each resident's needs on moving in or within four weeks, by a suitably skilled assessor | A dated, signed needs assessment for every resident, completed within four weeks of the move-in date, and the assessor's training or experience |
| Keep the housing safe, well maintained, clean and accessible, with no serious hazards | Gas, electrical and fire safety certificates, fire risk assessments, inspection and repair records, residents' fire safety inductions |
| Personal care only from a registered care provider | The care provider's CQC registration and the agreement with them |
| Approved service manager with the right skills, experience and capacity | The service manager's role, experience and training, and the council's approval |
| A nominated individual always in place | Who the nominated individual is, and their fit and proper person checks |
| Licence holder and key people stay fit and proper | Governance records, declarations and checks for directors, partners and the nominated individual |
| Use only the listed properties, for the licensed purpose | An up-to-date list of properties and what each scheme is for |
The six standards and the records behind each
The government's April 2026 response confirmed six National Supported Housing Standards. Under the draft regulations, meeting them would be a licence condition.
Person-centred support
Support built around each resident's needs, with a tailored support plan and agreed outcomes.
- A needs assessment for every resident
- A support plan with goals in the resident's own words, signed and dated by the resident and support worker
- Support plan reviews on time, recording progress against each goal
- A risk assessment, reviewed on time and when risks change
- Signed support session records linking each session to a goal in the plan
Empowerment
Residents understand their rights and can complain, through clear, simple and accessible procedures.
- A signed record that each resident's rights, the complaints process and how their information is used were explained at move-in
- A complaints log with each complaint, the response and the outcome
- Evidence residents are involved in their own support planning and reviews
Environment
Clean, comfortable and safe living spaces.
- Property safety certificates and inspections
- Each resident's fire safety induction, signed
- Repairs reported and completed, with dates
- Incident reports for anything affecting safety
Staff and safeguarding
Suitable, trained staff and sound safeguarding.
- Safe recruitment records, including DBS checks at the level each role allows
- Training records for every worker, including safeguarding
- A safeguarding policy and a log of concerns raised, referrals made and outcomes
- Supervision records
Local need
Provision that fits what the area needs. This standard applies once councils have published their local supported housing strategies, due by 31 March 2027.
- Referral sources and who each scheme houses
- How your schemes fit the council's strategy, once it is published
Statement of purpose
A clear description of what each scheme is for and who it serves.
- A written statement of purpose for every scheme, kept up to date
The four-week needs assessment
The draft condition most likely to catch providers out is the needs assessment on moving in or within four weeks. In practice that means:
- Every resident, not most. Including emergency and out-of-hours move-ins, and residents transferred from another scheme.
- Dated and signed. So the four weeks can be checked against the move-in date.
- By a suitably skilled assessor. Keep a record of who completed each assessment and their training.
- Visible across the service. A provider needs to see, at any time, which residents are approaching four weeks without an assessment.
How long to keep the records
The draft regulations set record-keeping duties for councils, not a retention period for providers. Keep residents' records for as long as you need them to evidence the support you gave, for Housing Benefit reviews, complaints and licensing, and set a retention period in your data protection policy. Our guide to supported housing paperwork covers retention.
How Residoc keeps licensing records complete
Residoc is supported housing software built around the records licensing will look at.
- Needs assessments at move-in. The Initial Needs Assessment is a move-in form, completed as a guided conversation and signed on screen, and a new resident's move-in forms stay flagged until every one is filed.
- Person-centred support plans. Short, medium and long-term goals in the resident's words, with reviews at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months booked automatically from the plan.
- Risk assessments. Scored with the resident, with reviews at 3, 6 and 9 months and the next full assessment at 12 booked automatically, and a staff review raised when a worker disagrees with a score.
- Rights explained and signed. The Knowing Your Rights form records each of the resident's rights, each one signed.
- Fire safety induction. Each point walked at the property and signed.
- Signed support session records linked to the goal each session worked on, a contact log with photo evidence, and incident reports.
- Document checks. Providers see, for every current resident, missing move-in documents, reviews due or overdue and forms left in draft.
- Evidence in one download. A resident's whole file, or everything from a period, as one ZIP file when the council asks.
Frequently asked questions
What records will supported housing licensing require?
Under the draft regulations: a needs assessment for every resident on moving in or within four weeks, records showing the six National Supported Housing Standards are met, evidence the housing is safe and well kept, and governance records for the licence holder, nominated individual and service manager.
Does every resident need a needs assessment within four weeks?
Under the draft licence conditions, yes: each resident's needs must be assessed on moving in or within four weeks, by a suitably skilled assessor who meets the standards. The regulations are still in draft.
What are the six National Supported Housing Standards?
Person-centred support, empowerment, environment, staff and safeguarding, local need, and statement of purpose. They were confirmed in the government's April 2026 response.
What is a statement of purpose in supported housing?
A written description of what each scheme is for and who it serves. It is one of the six National Supported Housing Standards.
Do supported housing providers need to keep complaints records?
The empowerment standard requires clear, simple and accessible complaints and redress procedures. A complaints log with each complaint, the response and the outcome is the clearest way to show this.
When do providers need these records?
Licensing is not expected before 2027, but councils already ask for most of these records on Housing Benefit claims. Getting them right across every resident takes time, so start now.
Will the council inspect records for a licence?
The draft regulations let councils decide applications, set conditions and enforce them, including through improvement notices. Expect councils to ask for evidence that conditions are met, as many already do for Housing Benefit.
Can supported housing software help with licensing?
It helps you keep and show the records: needs assessments, support plans, risk assessments, reviews and signed session records for every resident, with what is missing or overdue shown before a council finds it. Software does not grant a licence. Try Residoc for free.
Sources
- MHCLG: Supported housing licensing regime: consultation on draft regulations (15 October 2026)
- MHCLG and DWP: Supported housing regulation consultation: government response (April 2026)
- MHCLG: Local supported housing strategies: statutory guidance (February 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023
