STAIRs
Social Tenants Access to Information Requirements (STAIRs)
What is STAIRS?
STAIRs is a 'Social Tenants Access to Information Requirement scheme' which is a statutory standard that ensures registered social housing providers publish certain information to ensure transparency between them and their tenants. Click here to find out more on the gov.uk STAIRS page.
Stairs Publication Scheme
The government requires all housing providers to introduce a STAIRs publication scheme by October 2026.
Much of the information we are required to publish under STAIRs is already available on our website. To make it easier to access, we have organised the information into the STAIRs categories below and included links to the relevant pages.
Governance and decision making
- You can find out everything you want to know about Sussex Housing & Care — click here to learn 'about us'
- Meet our Executive and Senior Management Team — click here to see the 'our team' page
- Our Board is responsible for setting our strategic direction and overseeing the organisation's performance. It ensures that our Executive Team, which manages our day-to-day operations, is delivering our objectives effectively. Click here to find out more about who they are by visiting Our Board page
- Policies on our website contains our decision making policies as well as our policies relating to the management of social housing — click here to see our policies
- Our complaints process explains how we ensure we’re compliant with the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code — click here to see our complaints process
- We developed a Residents' Charter with a group of residents who volunteered to help co-create the charter. We discussed the objectives set out in the government’s White Paper, how this affects the delivery of our services, and as a result what commitments we should be making. Our Board approved the Charter. Residents' Charter [pdf] 3MB
- Our charter fed into the development of our Resident Engagement Strategy and we continue to deliver our strategy and involve residents. You can read the full strategy here: Resident engagement strategy 2023-2025 [pdf] 223KB
- Our Resident Sounding Board is a group of residents who scrutinise our services and work in partnership with us to improve our service to residents. Click here for more information about the Sounding Board.
Spending
This section provides information about how we manage our finances and use our income to deliver and improve our homes and services.
- We publish details about our spending, grants and use of service charge income in our financial statements. These can be found in our financial statements which are updated annually — click here to see out Financial Statements
- We also publish an Annual Report which highlights some key financial information — Annual Report 2025-2026.pdf[pdf] 3MB
Housing stock management
This section provides information about how we maintain, repair and invest in our homes.
- Our Annual report d etails our performance during the year, including repairs, building safety, energy efficiency improvements and investment in our homes — Annual-Report-2024-25.pdf
- Our Strategic Plan sets out our priorities and long-term approach to maintaining, improving and investing in our homes and communities— Strategic-Plan-2026-2028.pdf
- Our Asset Management Strategy explains how we plan, maintain and invest in our homes to ensure they remain safe, well-maintained, sustainable and fit for the future — Asset Management Strategy
- Click here for information about our sustainability at Sussex Housing & Care. This sustainability page provides information about our sustainability initiatives and progress, including energy efficiency improvements, carbon reduction projects, recycling and waste reduction programmes, biodiversity initiatives, and the practical steps we are taking to create more sustainable homes and services.
- Our Sustainability Strategy sets out our long-term vision, objectives and priorities for reducing environmental impact, improving energy efficiency, and embedding sustainability across our homes, care services and operations — Click here for our Sustainability Strategy
- Information about our EPC will be added soon.
Performance
- Our performance page provides information about our performance against key service measures, including safety compliance, repairs, lettings, arrears, resident satisfaction and Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSMs), helping residents understand how well we are delivering our services - Click here to see our performance
- Our complaints and compliments page provides information on how to make a complaint, compliment or comment, what to expect from our complaints process, and how we use feedback to improve our services. It also includes details of independent organisations that can provide advice or support, together with our complaints performance reporting, including the Complaints and Compliments Board Report and Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code Self-Assessment. Click here to view our complaints and compliments page
- Information request data- Information will be published here from April 2027, when residents are able to submit information requests.
- Media Releases: Click here to view the latest news published by Sussex Housing and Care.
Housing services
- The living with us page provides residents with information, support and services to help them live independently and get the most from their home. It includes guidance for tenants and leaseholders, information about paying for your home, repairs, safety, complaints, resident involvement, cost of living support and the services available from Sussex Housing and Care - Click here to visit the Living With Us page
- The information for tenants page provides guidance on tenancy matters, resident responsibilities, support services, complaints, anti-social behaviour, and other information to help residents manage and enjoy their home - Click here to visit the information for tenants page
Lists and registers
This section provides information on the registers we’re required to keep for the management of our housing services.
- We have a responsibility to keep residents, staff and our properties safe. Information is available about the safety checks, inspections and compliance activities we carry out, including fire, gas, electrical and water safety. Click here to view the keeping your home safe information.
- Other lists and registers related to social housing management: Most of our social housing properties are allocated via local authority choice-based lettings schemes. Click here to find out how to apply for a Sussex Housing & Care home. Alternatively, users can search by postcode using Apply for council housing - GOV.UK.
Social Housing Management
All our decision making policies, as well as our policies relating to the management of social housing, are available on our website — Click here to view the Policies section of our website
Information requests
The second element of the STAIRS scheme requires all social housing providers to have a process in place for responding to information requests from tenants by April 2027. We are currently developing these arrangements and will publish further information once they are introduced.