Curo Construction’s administrators expect trade and expense creditors to lose nearly £20m following the contractor’s collapse and administration. The report says unsecured creditors total £21.2m, with recovery efforts complicated by lack of access to the company’s COINS software and incomplete information from former directors.
The government has started recruiting for a permanent chair of the Building Safety Regulator, with the role advertised at £104,000 a year. The position has been filled on an interim basis by former London Fire Brigade commissioner Andy Roe since last July.
The Law Society has urged the SRA to avoid adding new reporting duties for firms unless proposals are clearly evidence-based, proportionate and built around better use of existing regulatory data. It supports earlier risk identification and stronger consumer protection, but warns that expanding notification requirements could create unnecessary administrative burdens, especially for smaller firms and sole practitioners.
The government says the courts and tribunals system will need at least 1,000 additional judges and tribunal members to manage the expected rise in possession and rent-related disputes under the Renters Rights Act. It is also developing new digital services for possession cases and the Residential Property Chamber, with full end-to-end digitisation of court processes targeted for May next year.
Bolton Council is proposing a new HMO licensing regime that would require mandatory training for managing agents and landlords as a condition of obtaining an additional licence. The scheme is intended to improve property conditions and management standards, with full operation expected in early 2027 and enforcement backed by a new council team.
Manchester Developments has been fined after failing to carry out required repairs to the fire-damaged, long-vacant Robin Hood public house in Stretford. The case comes as Trafford Council continues to consider a live planning application to convert the site into housing, while also taking enforcement action on other unused properties in the borough.
New ONS figures show UK private rents continuing to rise, with the average monthly rent reaching £1,393 in July, up 3.7% year on year. The article attributes the increase to reduced rental supply and landlord behaviour linked to the Renters Rights Act, alongside continued strong tenant demand.
Bath & North East Somerset Council is consulting on an updated housing enforcement policy that would allow stronger action against landlords where there are serious hazards, illegal eviction, repeated non-compliance or licensing failures. The update follows new duties and powers introduced through the Renters Rights Act and is intended to set out how the council will use those powers locally.
Wigan Council has decided not to allocate four Green Belt sites for employment development in its refreshed local plan, removing potential capacity for around 5 million sq ft of industrial and logistics space. The council says it still has sufficient employment land overall, but acknowledges a gap in the range of site types available, and it has also formally opposed Peel Land’s Gibfield Park masterplan despite the site’s allocation in the wider strategic plan.
The government has announced a tougher crackdown on illegal waste sites, combining enforcement action, regional coordination and additional funding to clear some of the most serious dumps. The package includes greater use of drones, more frontline Environment Agency officers, higher fines and a new Waste Crime Crackdown Group to target organised waste crime.
Efficiency East Midlands has launched an £800m, four-year framework for fire safety, building remediation, consultancy and fire doors across England and Wales. The framework is expected to run from February 2027 to February 2031.
The article reports that UK house price growth has slowed further, with annual inflation easing to 2.0% in the year to June 2026, while private rents continue to rise at a faster pace. London house prices appear to be stabilising after a prolonged decline, but rental growth remains elevated across the UK, with the strongest increases in the North East of England.
