duration

Location
Virtual

Ensure you are inspection ready with HQN’s summer school. Across five sessions, our consumer regulation experts will take you through every aspect of the inspection journey – from how to prepare for the call to self-assessments, presenting evidence and engaging colleagues and residents in the process.

  • Read more

    With proactive inspections by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) now a core part of the consumer standards regime, landlords must be prepared for rigorous inspections. Our practical series of workshops focus on the operational realities of managing an inspection.

    • What will you do when you get the call – have you a plan?
    • How best to present the evidence?
    • How to organise the on-site visit?
    • What to include in the initial presentation?
    • How to involve colleagues and residents?
    • How to make sure boards and governing bodies are supported – well prepared and briefed
    • What should you do when you get the result?

    Our workshops provide delegates with a step by step guide looking at the whole process from when you get the call to the publication of the C rating over five breakfast briefings.

    Led by HQN’s inspection and consumer regulation experts, the sessions will give delegates practical guidance on preparing for the call, managing the inspection process, and presenting a clear, well-evidenced picture of their organisation’s approach.

    Drawing on our work with providers of different sizes, structures and regulatory positions, we will explore what organisations need to think about before, during and after inspection. They will enable you to become organised, confident and ready for the inspection team.

    Why attend?

    This series will help you:

    • Understand the practical stages of preparing for a consumer inspection
    • Think through how to organise and manage the inspection process
    • Strengthen your self-assessment and supporting evidence
    • Prepare a clear and purposeful initial presentation
    • Engage staff and residents effectively
    • Support board and governing body oversight
    • Identify practical actions to help your organisation prepare for inspection.

    Who should attend?

    This series is aimed at everyone involved in consumer standards, inspection preparation or assurance, including:

    • Chief executives and executive teams
    • Directors and heads of service
    • Governance, assurance and regulation leads
    • Customer/resident engagement teams
    • Housing management, repairs and asset management leads
    • Complaints, scrutiny and service improvement teams
    • Board members and committee members.

    Booking options

    Delegates can book individual sessions or purchase a full series ticket for the whole series.

    The full series ticket enables organisations to send the most appropriate colleague to the session(s) most relevant to their role.

    Wednesday 29 July 2026 – Organisation and planning: Suzanne Hemingway

    Wednesday 5 August 2026 – Your self-assessment and your evidence: Suzanne Hemingway

    Wednesday 12 August 2026 – Your presentation: Damian Roche

    Wednesday 19 August 2026 – Resident and staff engagement: Lewis Kinch

    Wednesday 26 August 2026 – Governance and oversight: Damian Roche

  • Our speakers

    Suzanne Hemingway, Associate, HQN
    Suzanne has over 30 years’ experience of the social housing sector. She started as a volunteer in a women’s refuge and a homelessness shelter and went on to manage a variety of services for disadvantaged groups. She has held senior roles in both strategic and operational teams.

    As a consultant, Suzanne provided advice and training to a wide range of national, regional and local organisations from 2008 – 2016, when she returned to a full-time director role, integrating the wider housing brief – strategy, repairs, management and homelessness – with wider community engagement, development, arts and leisure briefs.

    In returning to consultancy, Suzanne brings experience of supporting boards and elected members to deal with adverse events, and to prepare for new housing regulation, as well as of providing advice and training at a senior level.  Suzanne has been a Fellow of CIH for many years.

    Damian Roche, Director, HQN
    Damian is one of HQN’s experts on the consumer standards. He has played a key role in our consultancy projects since the new regulatory framework began its journey into law and supported a wide range of organisations (local authorities, housing associations and ALMOs) with their self assessments and improvement plans. His particular areas of expertise are in customer engagement and wider stakeholder engagement as well as governance, complaints management.

    Damian is a regular speaker at HQN events and recently devised and delivered a series of workshops to assist providers with their preparations for the new regulatory framework. He has developed toolkits for use in self-assessments, the latest covering the empty homes and lettings process and our condensed toolkit for the regulation of social housing.

    As well as the learning and insight that Damian has gained through consultancy and project work Damian also has hands-on practical experience of delivering services. He has worked in the housing sector for more than 20 years, much of which has been at a senior/executive level, including eight years as Director of Customer Experience for Accent Housing.

    Lewis Kinch, Housing Engagement Lead, HQN
    Lewis is a co-creation and engagement specialist driven by a belief that the people closest to challenges hold the answers to solving them. With 15 years experience across housing and community work, he champions power-sharing and genuine partnership between organisations and the communities they serve.

    Lewis has led the development of innovative frameworks and strategies that give residents meaningful influence in decision-making, always centring seldom-heard voices and challenging traditional top-down approaches.

    He combines systems thinking with participatory design methodologies to tackle complex challenges, committed to embedding person-centred cultures where residents, staff, and stakeholders work as equals.
  • Programme
    Wednesday 29 July 2026

    Organisation and planning: Suzanne Hemingway
    How to plan for inspection, organise internal responsibilities, prepare colleagues and make sure your inspection arrangements are clear, coordinated and manageable.
    Wednesday 5 August 2026

    Your self-assessment and your evidence: Suzanne Hemingway
    What should a “good” self assessment contain?

    • How to use your self-assessment as a practical tool for inspection readiness
    • How to make sure your evidence is easy to access, relevant and aligned to the consumer standards
    • How to keep both up to date and inspection ready.
    Wednesday 12 August 2026

    Your presentation: Damian Roche
    How to approach the initial presentation to the regulator:

    • What does a “good” presentation look like? What should it cover?
    • How should it be structured?
    • How to get key messages across
    • How to present your organisation’s improvement journey with confidence
    • How to keep it precise, to the point and relevant.
    Wednesday 19 August 2026

    Resident and staff engagement: Lewis Kinch
    Residents are at the heart of the consumer standards. The Regulator will be looking for evidence that- residents are kept safe and secure, their voice is heard and acted on, services are tailored to residents’ requirements and priorities . Organisations will need examples of the positive outcomes and benefits being delivered to your residents.

    Compliance with the standards and doing well at inspection relies on everyone working in your organisation – not just the people at the top.

    This session focuses on how to involve residents and colleagues in inspection preparation in a way that is meaningful, transparent, manageable and makes a difference.
    Wednesday 26 August 2026

    Governance and oversight: Damian Roche
    The spotlight is on the people at the top – the board/governing bodies and leadership teams. This session looks at the support and information they need:

    • How best to prepare them and support them through inspection
    • How do they demonstrate and evidence their assurance role?
    • How do they demonstrate effective oversight of the consumer standards and service improvement?
    • How to respond to the Regulator’s feedback and the grading.
  • Cancellations and substitutions

    If you are unable to attend an event or public training course, please let us know in writing (email is fine) at least 48 hours before. Please email [email protected] Otherwise, a cancellation fee of £60 plus VAT will be chargeable. If you are using a package place to attend and do not inform us within the agreed time frame, then a place will be taken to cover your non-attendance. Cancellations must be made in writing, and will be acknowledged by HQN Limited.

  • Price and booking

    A full series ticket gives your organisation access to all five workshops; so different colleagues can attend the sessions most relevant to their role.

    Bookings are closed for this event.

    If you experience any issues when submitting your booking, please email [email protected] with the name and date of the session along with the delegate name(s), email address(es) and job title(s) and we'll process the booking for you.

Dates



This event comes with a professional development certificate

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