Damp and Mould Surveys for Social Housing in Scotland

Due to the climate in Scotland, local authorities, housing associations and social housing providers will regularly come across damp and mould problems in their housing stock.

For decades we have worked with social housing providers across Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and the whole of Scotland. We understand the requirements and complexities of providing safe and healthy homes for tenants, while working within strict budgets set out in tenders or for ongoing maintenance work.

Our CSRT or CSTDB qualified surveyors can carry out damp and timber surveys and provide you with clear and easy to understand recommendations to solve damp, condensation, mould and timber problems.

Our treatments and repairs are carried out to the highest industry standards, helping you meet government guidelines and legislation, while our technicians have vast experience working with tenants.

Condensation and mould are some of the most common problems occupants face in homes across Scotland every year, especially in the colder months. Other damp problems such as rising damp and penetrating damp are also common in social housing, especially in those built before the introduction of modern building regulations.

Properties built with single skin solid walls or those that have building defects are more susceptible to damp problems.

Damp problems can cause wet patches on walls, musty and damp smells, rotten timber
such as skirting boards and unhealthy living conditions which can lead to health problems. These include coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath as well as other respiratory issues.

Diagnosing a damp problem can often be complex, so it's important to use a qualified surveyor who not only has the expertise and knowledge, but has experience working with tenants.

Our surveyors have vast experience working with tenants and will minimise disruption throughout the survey, before providing you with a survey report outlining their findings, and recommendations for treatments or repairs, if required.

Damp is common in homes and properties across Scotland, with mould growth releasing microscopic spores into the air, which can cause allergic reactions or aggravate asthma when inhaled by occupants.

Because of the risks associated with damp and mould problems, in order to provide the highest quality living conditions for occupants, we can work with you to meet the strict legislative requirements and government guidelines in Scotland.

Because of the legislation involved, we work closely with social housing providers, local authorities and housing associations across Scotland to provide services in order to deliver safe, healthy homes for tenants.

The Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) was introduced in February 2004 to set a minimum social housing standard for housing owned by councils or Registered Social Landlords, for example Housing Associations.

It means social landlords must make sure their tenants' homes satisfy 5 broad areas (called criteria): meet the basic legal minimum standard, is free from serious disrepair, is energy efficient, has modern facilities and services, and is healthy, safe and secure.

Within these 5 broad areas, there are 55 separate elements (some of which are
subdivided) where compliance is measured. No.2 of which is No rising damp or penetrating damp and No.27 Damp proof course in good repair. This provides a very robust test of social housing standards.

Both local authority landlords and individual registered social landlords (RSLs) are required to publish annual compliance reports with the SHQS for the properties they control.

Awaab’s Law and the Social Housing (Regulation) Act was introduced in England after the death of Awaab Ishak in December 2020 from a severe respiratory infection caused by prolonged exposure to damp and mould in his home in England.

The Investigation and Commencement of Repair (Scotland) Regulations 2026 will introduce the set of regulations set out in Awaab’s law into Scottish law. Awaab’s Law is expected to come into force in Scotland in October 2026.

This newly introduced law is designed to improve the standard of social housing and will give tenants more power in holding landlords accountable. It has put in place specific and strict timeframes to respond to hazards, which includes damp and mould.

The Housing Ombudsman has enhanced powers and the Regulator of Social Housing will be able to carry out inspections of social housing providers, with the ability to issue unlimited fines for non-compliance and demand performance improvement plans.

The main change in the existing legislation in England (at present) is now landlords must investigate all emergency hazards in their housing stock, including damp and mould within 24 hours of becoming aware of the problem.

The day the landlord becomes aware of a hazard is counted as day ‘zero’, meaning that
day one starts the following working day. Hazards can be raised during routine inspections, during investigation into another hazard, being notified by a third party, a regulator or by the tenant raising the problem themselves.

Housing providers must ensure an investigation is carried out by a ‘competent person’ and where possible ‘should use properly qualified specialists to investigate where relevant’.

If the social housing provider is unable to complete the safety work within the 24 hours for an emergency hazard, they must secure the provision of suitable alternative accommodation for the tenant at the landlord’s expense, until the relevant safety work has been completed.

Awaab’s Law had made these timeframes a part of tenancy agreements, whether existing or new. All social housing providers, local authorities and councils and those who provide social housing must comply with the new legislation or face legal action for breach of contract.

With Awaab’s Law already being law in England, once it is put into practice in Scotland it will make clear that social landlords need to take proactive responsibility for the health of their properties and tenants, meaning property inspections, regular maintenance and reactive responses to hazards must take place.

Wise Property Care are on hand to help social housing providers meet this criteria, offering a reactive approach for both surveying and carrying out remedial works.

Because of the new legislation and regulations to protect tenants from damp and mould, social housing providers will now need to deal with black mould within strict time frames as damp and mould are classed as a ‘category one’ hazard.

Wise Property Care works with numerous social housing providers and are able to offer a reactive and thorough mould treatment service, working closely with our sister company Rentokil Specialist Hygiene.

Repairs for associated building defects can be carried out by DCUK, while Wise Property Care can provide you with damp and condensation surveys, and specialist damp proofing treatments.

While condensation is the most common form of damp that social housing providers will come across, properties are still susceptible to both penetrating damp and rising damp. If left untreated, these problems can cause structural damage and cause unpleasant living conditions for occupants.

A damp and timber survey will be able to identify the cause of damp, and provide you with a survey report outlining the next steps for any remedial treatments.

Many homes across Scotland are built using structural timber, which means joists, lintels and beams can often be at risk of fungal decay and woodworm. The risk of damage can be even greater if regular building maintenance is not carried out.

We can provide advice and long term solutions for a wide range of timber issues, including wet rot, dry rot and woodworm.

Wise Property Care are here to support you in providing the highest quality social housing to occupants.

In order to offer you a seamless process from start to finish, we have the necessary contract management skills in place, together with an independently accredited health and safety regime that includes rigorous training for our surveyors and technicians, who carry CSCS cards.

If you use Wise Property Care for a tendered project which involves property preservation requirements, we can tailor solutions specifically for you.

As part of Rentokil Initial Group, the health and safety of all stakeholders on site are our top priority. We have worked on hundreds of projects across Scotland, and are on hand to provide a professional service while ensuring full compliance with industry regulations and health and safety standards.

Our technicians are experienced in managing tenants expectations, and are equipped with protective floor coverings, Hilti dust extraction units and vacuums in order to keep properties  as clean and tidy as possible.

All Wise Property Care surveyors and technicians are fully trained in safe working practices, while our treatment fluids are HSE compliant as well as being generally odourless and non-flammable.

Wise Property Care regularly carry out work inside people's homes, so our staff have vast experience in prioritising the well-being of tenants from the initial survey to any remedial repairs being carried out.

Our tenant-focused approach prioritises:

We will work closely with you in order to maintain positive relationships with tenants, and prevent any unnecessary delays where possible.

Wise Property Care has a number of industry qualifications and accreditations, showcasing our professionalism and workmanship.

We have undergone numerous audits and received a number of endorsements from the regulatory bodies governing our industry, including by the Property Care Association (PCA).
We are also Trustmark, Constructionline, Alcumus (Safecontractor) and CHAS accredited.

For over two decades we have been offering our clients long term guarantees, giving them peace of mind their property is protected long term.

We typically back our damp proofing, woodworm, wet rot and dry rot work with long term guarantees up to 20 years, providing real and meaningful solutions.

Wise Property Care have a number of CSRT (Certificated Surveyor in Remedial Treatments) and CSTDB (Certificated Surveyor of Timber and Dampness in Buildings) qualified surveyors operating from a network of branches - meaning no matter where you are in Scotland, we have a qualified and experienced professional surveyor local to you.