The Housing Ombudsman’s 2026-27 Business Plan consultation is now open and is seeking views from landlords, residents and the wider sector on its strategic approach and priorities for the year ahead.

The consultation runs from Thursday 5 March to Thursday 26 March 2026, and, the ombudsman says, is an opportunity to shape how it responds to record demand and supports earlier resolution of complaints.

The ombudsman has seen an almost 500% rise in cases over five years, reaching over 13,000 cases in 2025-26. To respond to this demand, its Business Plan sets out clear targets for 2026-27:

  • 90% of high-risk cases determined within four months
  • 50% of cases determined within six months
  • No case older than 16 months at year end.

The service has already reduced its cost per case by 27% since 2023-24 and is targeting a further reduction in 2026-27. It completes over 800 investigations a month and is heading towards 1,000, with 30% more investigations completed in 2024-25 compared to the previous year.

The Business Plan also sets out a three-year caseload reduction strategy focused on:

  • Faster and more appropriate case routes
  • Improved landlord complaint handling to prevent complaints escalating to the ombudsman
  • Reducing the age of the oldest open cases
  • Increasing efficiency to lower the cost per case.

Subject to consultation and approval by the secretary of state, the 2026-27 membership fee will rise from £8.03 to £10.56 per home from 1 April 2026. The ombudsman says it has held its membership rate for two years despite an 87% rise in demand over the period.

Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman, said: “We recognise the enormous effort most social landlords have made to improve their approach to complaints over the last 6 years.

“Adopting the Complaint Handling Code, using complaints as an early indicator of wider issues, investing in their teams, strengthening governance — this is real and meaningful progress. Our Business Plan is designed to build on it.

“Our goal is to help landlords resolve more complaints within their own processes. Earlier resolution is better for residents, and it builds stronger, more trusting relationships between landlords and the people they serve.

“The fee increase is not something we have taken lightly. We held our rate for 2 years despite overwhelming demand and have driven down our cost per case significantly. We determined more than 980 cases last month, but we need to do more to ensure that complaints are responded to in a timely manner.

“The fee funds a wide range of support for members to prevent complaints escalating to us. This includes our Centre for Learning, which helps with complaint handling and tackling other key issues we see in our casework, to our independent investigation work which shares learning and provides recommendations for landlords to improve.

“Our ambition is to reduce fees within this corporate plan period. But right now, our focus is on responding to demand, improving our efficiency, and supporting landlords to do right by their residents.”

There are numerous ways to respond to the consultation, including by phone, post or online form.