Why We Set This Up

When something goes wrong with your home, it can start to take over your life. You report it, explain it again, chase a response and work your way through a complaints process. Meanwhile, you still have to live with the problem.

I know that experience because it is how my own journey began. I’m Ben Jenkins, founder and editor of Housing Sector, and a housing association resident myself. I wanted problems in my building addressed, clear answers to reasonable questions and the services my neighbours and I were paying for.

Housing Sector grew from discovering how many other people were trying to achieve the same things. It is an independent, resident-founded platform combining housing journalism, landlord information and practical resources. Our starting point is straightforward: every home should be safe, warm, dry and affordable.

Our Journey

Before Housing Sector, there was the GreenSquareAccord Residents Support website.

My neighbours and I had been raising concerns about lift failures, leaks, security and communication. In 2021, I created a website to document those issues and give other residents a place to share their experiences. Publishing the correspondence and the history helped make problems visible beyond individual complaint files.

As more people got in touch, the conversation widened. Residents of other landlords described difficulties with repairs, service charges, building safety and being heard. Through articles, conversations and podcasts, I met people who had become campaigners because something had gone wrong with their home and they could not get it resolved.

That wider picture became Housing Sector. The GreenSquareAccord Residents Support site remains a separate platform focused on that landlord; Housing Sector looks across housing and asks what residents’ experiences reveal about the organisations, decisions and systems affecting their lives.

Speaking publicly has also brought challenges. In November 2024, Siân Berry MP raised my experience of legal pressure during a House of Commons debate on strategic lawsuits against public participation. It brought a resident’s experience into a national discussion about the ability to speak on matters of public interest.

My experience explains why I started. The people who continue to share their experiences help explain why this work matters.

Faults and Questions

Housing is complicated. Providers face difficult decisions about funding, ageing homes, repairs, development and the services residents need. Understanding those pressures is part of asking useful questions.

Residents are entitled to ask where their money goes, why work has been delayed, whether promises have been kept and what will change after a failure. Housing Sector exists to examine those questions, explain the evidence and keep the effect on people’s homes in view.

We also want to understand what works. When an organisation resolves a problem, improves a service or finds an approach others could learn from, that deserves attention too. The measure is what changes for residents.

The same expectation of accountability applies here. Our reporting should distinguish documented facts, personal experience and opinion. We seek supporting evidence and give organisations an opportunity to respond to allegations. If we get something wrong, we should correct it. Our Contact page explains how we assess stories and handle requests for corrections.

Housing Sector is independent of housing associations, landlords and sector bodies. That independence matters because readers need confidence that our editorial decisions are ours to make.

Find Information, Ask Questions, Share Your Experience.

You can use Housing Sector to read our reporting, find your landlord or explore practical resources. Our directory is growing, and performance ratings are being developed.

If you have an experience we should know about, get in touch. You do not need to arrive with a perfectly written story. A brief account of what happened, the key dates and the relevant correspondence give us somewhere to start.

Whether you are a resident looking for answers or someone working in housing who wants to understand what needs to improve, you are welcome here. Better housing depends on people being able to ask questions, share what they know and be taken seriously.

Housing Providers — Let’s Close the Gap

Honesty, transparency, accountability and openness should be at the heart of the relationship between housing providers and residents, yet too often they can feel difficult to find. Housing Sector is bringing those principles together in a place where questions can be asked, experiences shared and answers examined openly. There is a gulf between what providers say and what many residents experience, and closing it will take a willingness to listen, acknowledge failures and demonstrate progress. This is an opportunity for providers to be part of that work, helping build understanding and trust through honest dialogue and meaningful action. If you would like to be part of that journey, contact me.