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Conditions of state registration
You must always meet the conditions of your registration under the Queensland State Regulatory System for Community Housing (QSRSCH).
To ensure that this is occurring, we conduct compliance assessments at least every 2 years.
If you don't comply with the conditions of your registration, we prefer working with you to resolve issues and improve your performance, rather than take enforcement action. However, we will take enforcement action if required.
This guide contains information about your registration conditions and how to ensure you meet them throughout your registration period.
Regulatory code for local government community housing providers
This Queensland State Regulatory Code outlines the performance outcomes and performance requirements that registered local government community housing providers must comply with under the Housing Act 2003.
Tenant and housing services
The local government is fair, transparent and responsive in delivering housing assistance to tenants, residents and other clients, particularly in relation to:
- determining and managing eligibility, allocation and termination of housing assistance
- determining and managing rents
- setting and meeting relevant housing service standards
- supporting tenant and resident engagement
- facilitating access to support for social housing applicants and tenants with complex needs
- managing and addressing complaints and appeals relating to the provision of housing services
- maintaining satisfaction with the overall quality of housing assistance.
Housing assets
The local government manages its community housing assets in a way that ensures suitable properties are available now and in the future, particularly in relation to:
- determining changing housing needs and plans asset acquisitions, disposals and reconfiguration to effectively respond (strategic asset management)
- setting and meeting relevant property condition standards
- planning and undertaking responsive, cyclical and life-cycle maintenance to maintain property conditions (asset maintenance).
Community engagement
The local government promotes community housing to local organisations that work with potential residents, tenants or clients*.
* Deemed to be satisfied for local governments.
Governance
The local government is well-governed to support the aims and intended outcomes of its business, specifically in relation to:
- ensuring coherent and robust strategic, operational, financial and risk planning
- ensuring effective, transparent and accountable arrangements and controls are in place for decision making to give effect to strategic, operational, financial and risk plans
- complying with legal requirements and relevant government policies
- ensuring the governing body has members with appropriate expertise, or that such expertise is available to the governing body*.
* Not required to be actioned by local governments.
Probity
The local government maintains high standards of probity relating to the business of the provider, specifically in relation to:
- establishing and administering its code of conduct
- establishing and administering a system of employment and appointment checks
- establishing and administering a system for preventing, detecting, reporting on and responding to instances of fraud, corruption and criminal conduct
- maintaining the community housing sector's reputation.
Management
The local government manages its resources cost effectively, specifically in relation to:
- demonstrating that it utilises its housing assets and housing-related funding to meet housing-related business goals
- implementing appropriate management structures, systems, policies and procedures to ensure it can meet the operational needs of its business (including having people with the right skills and experience, and the systems and resources, to achieve its business's intended outcomes).
Financial viability
The local government is financially viable at all times, specifically in relation to:
- ensuring that it has a viable capital structure
- maintaining appropriate financial performance
- managing financial risk exposure.
Reporting performance outcomes
The local government must report on financial and operational measures and complete a housing asset performance report.
Read the guides for state providers about metrics and indicators for operational and financial measures, and about completing your Community Housing Asset Performance Report (CHAPR).
Notifiable events and incidents for community housing
Under the Housing Act 2003, registered providers and state providers of community housing must notify the Registrar if certain events or incidents occur that:
- damage, or could damage, the community housing sector's reputation
- may affect an organisation's ability to meet their conditions of registration.
Notifiable events or incidents
This list contains events that are notifiable under Schedule 3, part 1, section 6 of the Housing Act 2003 and the time frame for notifying the Registrar:
Notifiable event or incident | Time frame for notification |
---|---|
A decision to appoint a voluntary administrator to the provider | As soon as practicable after the decision |
A decision to wind-up the provider | As soon as practicable after the decision |
The appointment of a receiver to the provider | As soon as practicable after the provider learns of the receiver's appointment |
A decision to apply for cancellation of the provider's registration on the national register | As soon as practicable after the decision and at least 28 days before the day the application is made |
A decision to conduct a vote at a meeting on a matter that may affect the provider's eligibility to remain registered on the national register or the category of the provider's registration | As soon as practicable after the decision and at least 28 days before the day the meeting is held |
A change in the provider's affairs that may affect its compliance with the Housing Act 2003 of the corresponding law of another participating jurisdiction | Before the change or within 3 days after the change |
Any other event for which the Registrar gives the provider notice | Within the time stated in the notice |
Defining a notifiable incident or event
Providers often need to decide what incidents or events to notify us about.
To help you make that decision, here are some examples that we consider notifiable:
- serious or repeated instances of fraud, corruption or criminal conduct
- any instances of serious or repeated breaches of the provider's code of conduct
- the removal of governing body members or senior staff
- the resignation of the chief executive officer or equivalent or senior staff member for non-personal reasons
- the dismissal of the chief executive officer or financial officer
- the investigation of the provider by external agencies such as funding bodies, law enforcement bodies, or integrity agencies
- proceedings in a court or tribunal against the provider
- significant crimes committed or alleged committed in community housing property
- any matter that has adversely affected or may adversely affect the financial viability of the provider
- any breach or potential breach notices received from external agencies
- any adverse media coverage or potential adverse media coverage about the provider.
This list is not exhaustive. If you're unsure whether to notify about an incident or event, contact your primary analyst or the Registrar.
Time frame
After the incident or event occurs, you should notify the Registrar as soon as possible (i.e. no later than 3 days).
Don't delay notification until after the next governing body meeting. The Registrar needs enough time to consider and determine whether to take regulatory action.
Procedure for notification
Registered providers must develop a procedure to manage these notification requirements.
The procedure should be suitable for the scale and scope of the organisation and implications of the notifiable incident.
Notify the Registrar of any incident in writing and include details about:
- the incident, including when it happened or is going to happen
- the people involved
- the action you've taken or plan to take
- the contact details of the person responsible for managing your response to the incident
- whether you've notified any other regulators or external agencies, and details of any notification.
How to notify
- National Regulatory System for Community Housing (NRSCH) providers: Notify the Registrar using the online form.
- Queensland State Regulatory System for Community Housing (QSRSCH) providers: Notify the Registrar by email at QLDHousingRegistrar@chde.qld.gov.au.
For more information, contact us via:
- email: QLDHousingRegistrar@chde.qld.gov.au
- phone: 3013 2666
- post:
Regulatory Services
PO Box 690
BRISBANE QLD 4001.
Evidence guidelines for local government community housing providers
Local government community housing providers must meet the requirements of the Queensland State Regulatory System for Community Housing (QSRSCH) evidence guidelines (PDF, 555KB) as a condition of registration.
The guidelines describe the business documentation and performance data you need to ensure your community housing program is well governed, well managed and financially viable.
The evidence guidelines also outline the principles we apply when assessing your performance under the QSRSCH:
- accountable: able to justify regulatory assessments and be subject to scrutiny
- consistent: based on standardised information and methods
- transparent: clear and open processes and decisions
- flexible: avoiding unnecessary rules about how local governments organise their business and demonstrate compliance
- targeted: focuses on the core purpose of improving tenant outcomes and protecting vulnerable tenants, protecting government funding and equity and ensuring investor and partner confidence.
Use these evidence guidelines in conjunction with the following:
Compliance for local government community housing providers
State-based community housing providers must comply with performance requirements under the Queensland State Regulatory System for Community Housing (QSRSCH) as a condition of their registration.
You must demonstrate compliance through periodic compliance returns—undertaking standard compliance assessments at least every 2 years.
This involves completing a standard compliance return in our online regulatory system CHRIS, with a comprehensive assessment that focuses on all performance requirements involving the highest risk in the sector and for each registered community housing provider.
Where required, we will conduct an on-site compliance visit.
We may conduct a compliance assessment if we identify:
- serious operational or financial risk
- failure to comply with legislative or government policy and guidelines
- serious non-compliance
- a pattern of non-compliance
- serious complaints
- potential harm to tenants (identified or reported).
A regulatory analyst will give you information about compliance scheduling.
They will also guide you in completing your compliance return using the available tools, resources and the CHRIS system.
Read the guides about compliance for state providers and completing your return.
Financial viability and performance reporting requirements for community housing providers
Community housing providers must be financially viable at all times under Performance Outcome 7 of the Queensland State Regulatory Code, specifically for the following performance requirements:
- ensuring a viable capital structure
- maintaining appropriate financial performance
- managing financial risk exposure.
Each financial performance requirement has an associated set of performance indicators, performance thresholds, and recommended evidence sources to demonstrate capacity to comply and compliance.
You will need to demonstrate financial viability for the purposes of registration and ongoing compliance under the Queensland State Regulatory System for Community Housing (QSRSCH).
Our assessment of your financial viability is an integrated process involving analysis of a range of evidence documents and data such as:
- 2 years of historical and 2 years of forecast financial data reported in the Financial Performance Report (FPR) (XLSX, 1.8MB)
- audited financial statements
- trends in financial performance measures and ratios
- strategic and business planning documents
- budget assumptions
- risk management planning
- any growth and development plans.
The Financial Viability Guidance Note (PDF, 900KB) sets out a range of evidence sources, including evidence sources for local government providers suggested by the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ).
These are not intended to be prescriptive or exhaustive and you may use alternative business evidence or data.
Confidentiality
Financial information provided to the Registrar is treated as in-confidence and will not be disclosed without your consent.
More information
Email QLDHousingRegistrar@chde.qld.gov.au to request an accessible version of the Financial Viability Guidance Note or Financial Performance Report.
© The State of Queensland 1995–2024
- Last reviewed: 08 Sep 2021
- Last updated: 08 Sep 2021