(Applicable to Registered Providers and voluntary members of The Housing Ombudsman Scheme in England)
Updated May 2026
Part of the statutory nature of the Housing Ombudsman Code 2024 means that Registered Provider co-operatives are required to submit an annual submission of their performance against the Code to ensure they are compliant.
To help you through the submission process, CCH has been working with the Housing Ombudsman to provide you with a Complaint Handling Code Toolkit specifically for housing co-operatives.
Complaint Handling Code Toolkit
- Toolkit for annual submissions November 2025
- HOS Complaints policy template Co-operatives 2026
- Example of partially completed self assessment 2026
- Examples of Complaints performance reports and governing body statements
- Additional support material
- Complaint Handling Code Annual Submissions Form
- Trouble shooting guidance
The Ombudsman has the following recorded webinars which you may find useful:
- Evidence submissions webinar for landlords with less than 1000 homes – Submissions webinar – Housing Ombudsman (housing-ombudsman.org.uk)
- Statutory Code webinar for Cooperatives – Statutory Code Webinars: Recording of Statutory Code webinar for Cooperatives | HOSMWP (housing-ombudsman.org.uk)
Housing Ombudsman’s Centre for Learning
As a co-operative landlord, you can also sign up to the Centre for Learning here, where member landlords can network, share, learn, and improve understanding.
This section holds a range of high quality and accessible tools, documentation, and learning from across the sector. You can find good practice examples, e-learning, microlearning, webinars, videos, toolkits and podcasts hosted by experts from the Housing Ombudsman. [Some of their courses are CPD accredited].
You can also sign up for their regular newsletters in this section.
Please note: Your co-operative will be sent a reminder letter informing you of the deadline. Please make sure your contact details with the Housing Ombudsman are up to date so that you receive this reminder. CCH recommends that you create a specific email address for complaints ie [email protected]. You also need to let them know of any changes to your financial year end.
Failure of a Housing Ombudsman Service member to provide a submission by the relevant date, or failure to provide all of the supporting documents required means your co-operative may be issued with a Complaint Handling Failure Notice (CHFN). This will be the final stage of the Ombudsman’s process and the co-operative will be recorded as non-compliant. As part of this the Ombudsman may consider if a referral to the Regulator of Social Housing is required.