It took the Tenant Services Authority at least five months to admit that its promised fire safety register of social housing blocks would not be delivered.

This is according to internal documents released in response to a Freedom of Information request made by Inside Housing magazine.

The register, which was announced in February last year, was scrapped in November by the housing regulator.

However, a document circulated inside the TSA suggests that the regulator knew as early as June that it could not deliver its promise.

“We could be questioned on why work didn’t progress on this at all (eg in June/July we said “work is continuing.”)” the papers said.

“This may demonstrate to [the] housing minister that we do not follow through with commitments.

“We are going back on a promise…we may damage relationships with the [Tenants’ and Residents’ Organisations of England]…and other tenants’ groups.”

The plans for a national database holding information on fire safety measures in residential blocks were announced following the Lakanal House fire in July 2009, which killed six people.

It would have held details on ownership, the number of properties and the age of each block, as well as dates for due risk assessments.

Instead, the housing association and local government should adopt a ‘co-regulatory’ approach, the TSA said in November.

The TSA is to wind down operations by April 2010, following budget cuts by the coalition government.
Inside Housing has offered to produce an alternative housing register.

Speaking about different organisations sharing the workload and costs of a database, fire safety expert Arnold Tarling told Inside Housing:

"The fire brigade are not best placed to make a register. They are the first response. If the TSA does not do this, the housing organisations should make the information accessible themselves.

"It’s a significant opportunity lost to ensure the safety of tenants."