Sheffield council tenants left at serious risk over gas safety checks

Gas safety checks should be carried out every 12 months

Council tenants in Sheffield were put at risk due to failures to carry out gas safety checks in hundreds of homes.

The city council reported itself to the regulator in November, confirming more than 800 safety checks were overdue.

Annual checks are legally required in council-owned properties. The Regulator of Social Housing said there was a "risk of serious detriment" to tenants.

The regulator said it was not currently taking enforcement action as the council was now tackling the backlog.

The council admitted that a significant number of the checks were overdue by more than 12 months and some dated back years.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the regulator said: "Complying with statutory health and safety requirements is a fundamental responsibility of all registered providers because of the potential for serious harm to tenants."

In the worst case, gas leaks can cause carbon monoxide poisoning, fires and fatal explosions.

Liberal Democrat councillor Penny Baker, deputy chair of the housing committee, said the issue was concerning.

"Our tenants need to know that they're safe under their own roofs, and to guarantee that the council needs to be completing every single inspection on time, as is legally required," she said.

Councillor Penny Baker said a new policy should ensure the checks are carried out

The committee passed a new gas servicing policy in December and Ms Baker said that would assist officers in ensuring checks were done.

"We need to get to compliance as soon as possible - every day we've got overdue inspections is another day that a time bomb in someone's house may be overlooked."

The regulator said: "Taking into account the seriousness of the issues and the number of tenants potentially affected, the regulator has concluded that the council has breached the home standard and that there was a risk of serious detriment to tenants during this period."

Janet Sharpe, director of housing at the council, said the authority had made 200 properties gas compliant since it reported itself and had improved compliance from 87% in October to 98% this month.

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