Housing associations
Current evidence for every obligation.
Awaab's Law, the golden thread, the Decent Homes Standard and the Regulator all demand one thing most housing associations do not have: current, structured, defensible evidence of what condition the building envelopes are actually in.
01The evidence gap
Most housing associations hold condition data. The problem is what it looks like when you need to use it.
Stock condition surveys, contractor reports, reactive maintenance logs. The data exists. But rolling survey cycles leave gaps of three to five years between assessments. Traditional surveys cover internal components but rarely reach the external envelope where the highest-value failures start. And when each data source uses different language, grading and scope, the combined picture is unreliable.
Surveys are rolling, not current
A five-year survey cycle means that by the time a surveyor reaches a building, the previous assessment may be three to five years out of date. Roofs deteriorate between cycles. Facades crack. The condition you planned against may no longer reflect the condition you have.
Surveys cover the inside, not the outside
Traditional stock condition surveys are predominantly internal. The external envelope, where the highest-value failures start, is typically assessed from ground level at best. Flat roofs on multi-storey blocks are frequently recorded as 'not inspected' or 'assumed satisfactory.'
Evidence does not survive scrutiny
When the Housing Ombudsman, the Regulator, or a coroner asks what you knew about a building's condition and when, a narrative PDF from three years ago does not constitute a defensible record. They want dated evidence, located findings, graded severity and a documented response.
02What the gap costs
The evidence gap has specific consequences.
Awaab's Law timescale failures
When a tenant reports damp, you have 14 calendar days to investigate. Without current condition evidence for the building envelope, the investigation starts from zero every time. You are reacting to symptoms without understanding the building fabric causing them.
Undefended CAPEX plans
If the condition data behind your capital programme is incomplete, out of date or inconsistent, the plan cannot withstand challenge. Board members ask why Building A received funding before Building B. Without graded, costed findings from the actual envelope, the answers are professional opinion, not evidence.
Golden thread non-compliance
Higher-risk buildings must maintain a digital golden thread of accurate, current building information. If your condition records consist of ground-level photographs and narrative reports from two years ago, you will struggle to demonstrate 'accurate, up-to-date' information.
03How Ovrsite helps
One inspection programme, every obligation covered.
A systematic drone-captured inspection of your building envelopes produces the evidence you need in a format that serves multiple obligations simultaneously. Every building is assessed using the same analytical process, the same defect taxonomy and the same grading criteria. The findings are comparable across the portfolio, which means you can prioritise rationally, not politically.
- Dated visual and thermal evidence of every building envelope
- Graded, located, costed findings across the whole stock
- Consistent methodology and grading, building to building
- Thermal identification of moisture paths before damp presents internally
- A persistent digital record in Atlas for the golden thread
- No scaffold, no cherry pickers, no working at height
04Your obligations, covered
How one source of evidence serves each duty.
Awaab's Law
Thermal inspection identifies moisture paths and insulation failures in the building envelope before they present as visible damp internally. Finding the problem before the tenant reports it means you can act before the statutory clock starts.
Golden thread
For higher-risk buildings, the graded finding register in Atlas provides the dated, digital, accessible condition record that the golden thread requires. Every defect is located, photographed, graded and tied to your response.
Decent Homes
Condition data from inspection directly evidences whether key building components, roof structure, roof covering, external walls and windows, meet the reasonable repair standard. Thermal evidence identifies damp and mould risk at the building fabric level.
CAPEX planning
Graded, costed findings feed directly into a multi-year capital forecast. You can model different investment scenarios, phase work by severity and defend the plan with evidence when the board or a funder asks for the rationale.
Housing associations, answered
It complements them. Stock condition surveys cover internal components: kitchens, bathrooms, heating, electrics. Drone-captured inspection covers the external building envelope: roofs, facades, windows, drainage, thermal performance. Together they provide complete coverage. Separately, each leaves a significant gap.
Yes. UAV inspection is particularly suited to higher-risk buildings where scaffold access is expensive, disruptive and slow. We can capture every elevation and roof zone of an 18m+ building in a single operation without any equipment touching the facade.
Drone inspection does not require internal access. We inspect the building envelope from outside. This eliminates the access problems that delay traditional surveys in mixed-tenure blocks where leaseholder cooperation is inconsistent.
Typically within two weeks from instruction. For urgent cases, storm damage, regulatory requests or specific building concerns, we can often mobilise faster.
Cost depends on the number of buildings, their size and complexity, and whether thermal imaging is included. For a portfolio programme the cost per building is significantly lower than scaffold-based inspection. We can scope indicative costs after an initial conversation about your stock.
See it on your stock.
Tell us about your stock and the obligations you answer to. We will inspect a representative building, return graded findings in Atlas, and show you the evidence it produces for every duty at once.