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Charity insurance
Supported housing charity insurance is the programme protecting a charity that houses people who need support, covering its buildings, landlord and support activities, and its board. It matters because one fire, allegation or regulatory finding can test several policies at once.
Part of: Charity insurance
In short
Supported housing charities are landlords, support providers and employers at the same time, so their insurance has to work as one programme. The core is usually property and loss of rent, property owners' and employers' liability, abuse cover, professional or treatment liability for support work, and trustee or D&O cover. Fire safety duties, CQC registration where personal care is given, Regulator of Social Housing standards where registered, and the coming supported housing licensing regime all shape what insurers ask and what trustees should check. Review the programme whenever schemes, residents' needs or regulation change.
A supported housing charity usually carries three sets of risk at once. It is a landlord or property manager, so it answers for buildings, common parts and tenancies. It provides support, and sometimes personal care, so it answers for the quality of that support. And it is an employer and a governed body, so it answers for staff safety and board decisions.
A sound programme treats those as one picture rather than a pile of separate policies. The core sections are commonly property and loss of rent, property owners' and public liability, employers' liability, abuse cover, professional or treatment liability for support work, trustee indemnity or D&O, crime, cyber and motor. The charity insurance broker guide explains how these fit together for larger charities; this page focuses on what is different when the charity houses people who need support.
Ownership matters. Where the charity owns schemes, it insures the buildings. Where it leases from a private landlord or a housing association, or manages homes for another owner, the lease or management agreement decides who insures the structure and what the charity must insure itself. Those agreements are worth reading line by line before renewal, alongside property owners' cover.
Several regimes can apply, depending on what the charity does and where. The table summarises the ones trustees most often need to weigh.
| Regime | When it applies | Why it matters for insurance |
|---|---|---|
| CQC registration for personal care | Where the charity provides personal care to people who cannot do it for themselves, in the place they live. CQC says it is the nature of the care, not the housing, that decides registration, and that care must be genuinely separate from the accommodation agreement. | Insurers usually ask whether the service is registered. A service that drifts into personal care without registering may face questions on cover and on regulatory exposure. |
| Fire Safety Order and Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 | Multi-occupied residential buildings in England. The Responsible Person, often the organisation managing the building, must address common parts, structure, external walls and flat entrance doors in the fire risk assessment. | In buildings over 11 metres, communal fire doors must be checked at least every three months and flat entrance doors checked with best endeavours at least every 12 months. Records are commonly requested at renewal. |
| Regulator of Social Housing | Charities registered as non-profit registered providers. | Registered providers must meet published standards, including the Governance and Financial Viability Standard and consumer standards such as Safety and Quality and Tenancy. Board members face regulatory scrutiny that D&O cover should be checked against. |
| Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 | Supported housing in England where residents can claim Housing Benefit, once regulations are made. | The government plans local authority licensing and National Supported Housing Standards. Its response says regulations are being drafted, with consultation expected in late 2026, so the regime is not yet in force. |
| Charity Commission guidance CC49 | All charities in England and Wales. | Trustees must protect charity assets, take advice where they lack expertise and decide what to insure. Employers' liability is compulsory for charities with staff. |
Registered providers should also read the housing association board insurance page, which covers board liability under social housing regulation in more depth.
| Exposure | Cover that usually responds | Check |
|---|---|---|
| Fire, escape of water or malicious damage at a scheme | Property damage | Sums insured, unoccupied void conditions, who insures under the lease |
| Lost rent and service charges; decanting residents | Business interruption or loss of rent, with alternative accommodation if included | Indemnity period long enough for rebuild and re-letting |
| Resident or visitor injured in common parts | Property owners' or public liability | Activities wording covers housing management and support |
| Staff injured at work | Employers' liability | Lone working and violence risks disclosed |
| Allegation of abuse by staff, volunteers or another resident | Abuse cover, often a separate section | Basis (occurrence or claims-made), aggregate limit, retroactive date |
| Error in a support plan, risk assessment or medication prompting | Professional or treatment liability; see care provider PI | Whether personal care and medication tasks are within the description |
| Regulatory investigation or claim against the board | Trustee indemnity or D&O | Investigation costs and housing regulator scrutiny |
| Resident data breach | Cyber | Response costs; reporting to the Information Commission (formerly the ICO) |
| Staff theft of rent or resident monies | Crime | Whether third party property held in trust is covered |
A kitchen fire damages a shared house for eight residents. The property section usually pays for repairs, subject to the sums insured and policy terms. The bigger question is often income and residents: rent stops while the scheme is empty, and residents need somewhere safe to live. Whether loss of rent and decant costs are covered depends on how the business interruption section was set up.
A former resident alleges abuse by a support worker some years earlier. The cover that responds may be the policy in force when the abuse happened or the one in force when the claim is made, depending on the basis of the abuse section. Charities that have changed insurers or abuse wording without tracking retroactive dates can find a gap.
A housing support service begins helping some residents wash and take medication as needs rise, without reviewing CQC registration or telling insurers. If a resident is harmed, insurers may ask whether the activity was disclosed and lawful. Reviewing the service description as residents' needs change helps avoid that dispute.
Underwriters commonly look for evidence that the charity understands its residents and its buildings. Typical requests include:
Annual renewal is the minimum. Trustees should also ask for a review when:
A charity insurance programme review gives the board a documented second opinion, and the wider insurance programme review page explains the process. Board minutes recording that insurance was considered support trustees' duties under CC49. For context on how often things go wrong, see charity serious incident statistics.
Apex arranges insurance for supported housing charities; a broker reads every enquiry.
Leave a name and number and a broker who works with charities will call you back, usually the same working day. Or ask for a free second opinion on your charity’s insurance.
Or email your schedules and renewal date to info@apexinsurancebrokers.co.uk, or call 0117 325 0027.
Only if it carries on a regulated activity. CQC says personal care is regulated where people cannot provide it for themselves, and it is the care, not the housing, that decides registration. Housing management or social support alone usually falls outside. Check the service description with CQC guidance, and tell insurers which activities are carried out.
Under the Fire Safety Order the Responsible Person is defined by law and cannot simply be chosen. Government guidance says it is often an organisation such as the freeholder or managing agent. Where a charity manages a building, it may be the Responsible Person or share duties with the owner. Take legal advice if unclear.
Sometimes, but often only as a limited extension. For supported housing, abuse cover is commonly arranged as a dedicated section with its own limit and basis. Check whether it is occurrence or claims-made, whether the limit is aggregated, and whether resident on resident allegations are covered, subject to the policy terms.
Not at the time of writing. The Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023 allows for local authority licensing and national standards, but the government response says regulations are still being drafted, with consultation expected in late 2026. Trustees should plan for licence conditions and fit and proper tests when they arrive.
Usually yes. Section 189 of the Charities Act 2011 gives a general power to buy trustee indemnity insurance from charity funds where trustees are satisfied it is in the charity's best interests, subject to mandatory exclusions. Many governing documents also give the power directly.
Send us your current schedules, policy wordings and renewal date. We will review the whole programme and give you a one-page summary for your board: what to keep, what is missing and what to change. No fee and no obligation. Or call 0117 325 0027.
Get a second opinion Get a quoteApex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information, not advice on your individual circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
