Duties of relevant housing provider
12.—(1) The relevant housing provider which provides a house of residence or other accommodation under section 4 or 5 of the Measure shall be under a duty—
(a)to keep the property in repair;
(b)to arrange for a qualified surveyor (within the meaning of section 7(6)(b) of the Measure) to inspect the property at least every five years and, in the case of a new building, as soon as possible after the building is provided, and for a report to be submitted to the housing provider describing the state and condition of the property, including the state and condition of the interior, and the grounds and of any contents of the property provided by the housing provider;
(c)to send a copy of the surveyor’s report to the office holder and, after consulting the office holder, to carry out within a reasonable time any repairs recommended in the report which appear to the housing provider to be appropriate;
(d)to pay the Council Tax and such other recurring charges as may be specified in the statement of particulars of office given under regulation 3 above (or in any statement of changes given under regulation 6 above);
(e)to insure the property against all such risks as are included in the usual form of house owner’s policy relating to buildings.
(2) In this regulation “repairs” means such works of repair and replacement as are needed—
(a)to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the buildings of the property, including doors, windows, drains, gutters and external pipes;
(b)to keep in repair all walls, fences, gates, drives and drains of the property, other than those which some person other than the office holder is wholly liable to repair; and
(c)to keep in repair and proper working order—
(i)the installations in the property for the supply of water, gas and electricity, and for sanitation, including basins, sinks, baths and sanitary conveniences,
(ii)the installations in the property for space heating or heating water, and
(iii)any fixtures, fittings and appliances in the property (other than those mentioned in the preceding sub-paragraphs) provided by the relevant housing provider,
including works of interior decoration necessitated in consequence of such works as aforesaid.
(3) In determining for the purposes of this regulation the standard of repair appropriate to any building regard shall be had to the age, character and prospective life of the building and, in particular, in the case of a building included in a list under section 1 of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990(1) or a building in a conservation area, to the special architectural or historic interest of the building.
(4) In this regulation and regulations 13, 14 and 15 below “property” includes any land or other buildings which forms or form part of or is or are ancillary to the house of residence or other accommodation.