How Housemark can support organisations
The research shows respondents at very different stages of AI maturity. Some described formal strategies, governance frameworks and coordinated adoption, while others are still building the foundations needed for wider and more consistent use.
Across the survey, skills, data quality, governance, measurement and wider organisational readiness recur as important issues. These challenges often form part of a broader journey from experimentation towards more coordinated and measurable use of AI.
The findings point to several areas where housing providers may benefit from additional support and benchmarking.
These include:
- Understanding current AI maturity and organisational readiness
- Benchmarking progress against peers, Housemark data and the survey respondent base
- Identifying practical use cases aligned to strategic priorities
- Strengthening governance and risk management approaches
- Supporting workforce capability and adoption
- Developing approaches to measuring impact and value
- Moving from isolated experimentation towards more coordinated implementation
Respondents placed significantly greater emphasis on improving data quality, developing staff capability and strengthening governance than on investing in additional AI tools. Housemark’s interpretation is that the next phase of adoption will depend increasingly on organisational capability rather than technology procurement alone.
Housemark believes sustainable AI adoption combines practical use cases with reliable data, skilled colleagues, proportionate governance and effective measurement. These themes provide a useful framework for organisations assessing their current position and next steps.
Importantly, the research does not suggest there is a single path to maturity. Organisations vary considerably in size, structure, priorities and levels of AI adoption. For some, the next step may involve building confidence and capability. For others, the focus may be on strengthening governance, improving data quality or measuring the impact of existing activity more effectively.
Housemark’s role is not to prescribe a universal approach, but to help organisations understand where they currently sit, benchmark progress against relevant peers and evidence and identify practical actions that align with their own priorities and operating environment.
The findings provide a snapshot of the respondent base rather than a statistically representative measure of the whole sector. For organisations looking to understand their maturity, assess readiness or determine the next stage of their AI journey, Housemark can provide support grounded in sector insight, performance improvement and practical experience.
Methodology
Housemark’s survey received 66 responses from professionals representing at least 50 housing organisations, including housing associations, local authorities and ALMOs. Organisation names were optional and more than one response may have been submitted from the same organisation.
- Unless otherwise stated, percentages in this report are calculated from all 66 responses and rounded to the nearest whole number.
- Questions allowing respondents to select more than one answer may total more than 100%.
- Findings describe the respondent base and should not be interpreted as a statistically representative measure of the entire social housing sector.
- Open-text responses have been used to illustrate practical applications and emerging themes. Case studies will be added following confirmation and approval from the participating organisations.