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Return to learning
How the new qualification requirements for senior housing roles will benefit even the most experienced professionals
PEOPLE & CULTURE
Oliver Henry
Business Development Director, LBL Skills – a division of Live Better Locations Limited
Oliver Henry
Business Development Director, LBL Skills – a division of Live Better Locations Limited
Issue 82 | February 2026
There were mixed reactions to the new requirement enabled by the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2023 for senior housing professionals to have a formal professional qualification. On the one hand, it sounds like a sensible idea and similar to the requirements of other professions. But for someone who has been successfully working in social housing for decades, it may seem like a pointless additional piece of bureaucracy.
If you find yourself in the second category, with vast experience but few letters after your name, let me try to persuade you that the new requirement has strong merits, despite any passing inconvenience.
Elevating experience
For many housing professionals, years of frontline practice, management responsibility, or board-level involvement do of course provide a wealth of experience. You have the letters QBE after your name (Qualified By Experience!).
It can be tempting to assume that formal study is unnecessary in your case. Yet returning to learning with Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Level 4 or 5 qualifications offers unique benefits that complement and elevate professional experience.
Far from duplicating what you already know, these qualifications refine, challenge and extend your expertise, ensuring you will remain effective in a sector that is constantly evolving.
“Far from duplicating what you already know, these qualifications refine, challenge and extend your expertise.”
Five reasons to gain a CIH Level 4 or 5 qualification
There are five more compelling reasons to seriously consider the return:
1. Experience plus theory creates authority
Practical experience is invaluable, but it can sometimes be limited to the contexts you have worked in. CIH and other qualifications provide structured theoretical frameworks that explain why policies and practices exist, and how they relate across the wider housing system.
Combining lived experience with academic grounding creates authority: you can not only say “this works in practice,” but also explain the underpinning legislation, ethics, and strategic rationale. Having this perspective strengthens your personal credibility with boards, regulators, and stakeholders.
2. Refreshing and updating your own knowledge
Housing law, regulation, and policy are not static. Duties, compliance and priorities shift regularly. Even seasoned professionals risk relying on outdated assumptions if they do not refresh their knowledge.
CIH Level 4 and 5 qualifications ensure you are up to date with current best practice and effective sector trends. Programmes are regularly refined and updated. You deciding to return to learning demonstrates your humility and adaptability – qualities that mark out true leaders.
3. Challenging assumptions and broadening perspective
Let’s be honest, experience can sometimes lead to entrenched habits or narrow viewpoints. Structured learning challenges assumptions, exposing you to new perspectives and case studies beyond your immediate environment.
At Level 5, for example, you explore leadership, ethics, and strategic housing management, which may differ from the operational focus of your career. This broadening of perspective helps you avoid complacency and equips you with the tools to innovate.
“From October 2029, not holding the relevant qualification may disqualify you from retaining certain senior or executive roles within housing.”
4. Formal recognition of skills
If you were an accountant, solicitor, or social worker you would be required to hold a valid qualification. Many housing professionals have extensive skills but lack formal recognition. CIH qualifications validate your expertise, translating years of practice into a nationally recognised standard.
Due to the competence and conduct standards recently introduced for housing managers and executives, this is now essential for career consolidation and progression. From October 2029, not holding the relevant qualification may disqualify you from retaining certain senior or executive roles within housing.
5. Personal growth and professional renewal
We notice that so many students who return to study after years in practice find it invigorating. It reignites their curiosity, sharpens their critical thinking, and often restores their motivation.
One senior housing student commented that it had ‘renewed their passion for housing, reminding them of the bigger picture and the social purpose behind their work’. Remember, it’s not about proving what you already know, but about rediscovering the joy of learning and applying it in fresh ways.
Setting an example
So, I would assert that returning to learning sets a powerful example and encourages your colleagues to pursue their own development. Studying a CIH Level 4 or 5 qualification is not about questioning the value of your experience – it is about enhancing it.
Even the most seasoned housing practitioner benefits from the renewal, challenge, and credibility that CIH learning provides. In short, returning to study despite your experience is not redundant, it’s transformative.
