As one of the UK’s largest Shared Ownership providers through our Home Reach scheme, our focus has always been ensuring that our customers receive the very best when purchasing a home through the Government-backed scheme.
We’re pleased to have been a part of the launch of the new Shared Ownership Code, which has aims to bring greater clarity, fairness and support for Shared Owners across the country.
One of just eight providers helping to pilot the new Code, we worked on testing and refining it from December 2024 to March 2025 to ensure that our customer first approach was as integrated into the Code.
What makes the new Code so customer-focused?
The Shared Ownership Code introduces a range of new standards that are starting to be implemented, designed with your interests front and centre. A few key highlights that we have begun adopting include:
- Service Charge Information: A clear, standardised Service Charge Information Document (SCID) must now be provided to all customers, alongside ongoing cost summaries.
- Twelve‑month defects guarantee: From purchase completion, every Shared Ownership customer will get at least a full year’s protection – an upgrade from some providers’ shorter periods, with additional plans to look at extending this to 24 months.
- Lease extension clarity: Providers must proactively inform you if your lease dips below 90 years – or issue regular reminders if data isn’t available.
- Enhanced staff training: Team members will receive dedicated training plans so they can better support your Shared Ownership journey.
What does this mean for you
- Greater transparency from start to finish: Before you even reserve your home, you’ll understand monthly costs, service charge mechanisms and any lease intricacies.
- Stress-free support after buying: Your home now benefits from a full-year defects period, with your provider ready to handle any repairs. Plus, important lease info will be flagged so that you’re aware of this from day one.
- Expert support at every stage: Customised training means our team can advise you with genuine confidence – whether you’re buying, staircasing, or preparing to move on.
What does this mean for Heylo?
We used a tracker to map our existing workflows against the new Code for our Home Reach customers and identified several strengths and opportunities to innovate. We have started to implement these in our work, including:
- Service charges: Managing over 2,000 homes – often with third-party maintenance – highlighted communication opportunities. We aim to give you clearer breakdowns at point of reservation and sale.
- Continued training: Although staff training was to a good standard already, we are introducing custom training modules to elevate service and consistency even further.
At Heylo, our involvement in the new Code centres around raising the bar for Shared Ownership. We’re pleased to have been a part of the introduction of this new Code and look forward to continuing to help our customers onto the property ladder through Shared Ownership.
We are also proud to be a part of both the Shared Ownership Campaign and the Shared Ownership Council, furthering our commitment to delivering affordable homeownership options for our customers.
