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Like us, we're sure you can't believe that it's nearly halfway through August already. With schools off for summer and the longest daylight hours now well behind us, autumn seems to be approaching with rapid pace.
In this month's newsletter, we share important reminders and updates including:
- the imminent DMS data submission deadline
- clarification on required activities to reach your 'completion date'
- key activities required as a part of your project closure
- TrustMark lodgement requirements aligned with your grant funding agreement (GFA)
- an invitation to showcase your project by hosting our teams for a site visit
- and more
DMS data submission reminder
The DMS data submission deadline falls on the 10th working day of the month. Staying on top of this helps us track progress and keep operations running smoothly.
It's also a critical requirement for the department's official statistics which are published monthly on the gov.uk website.
The next deadline to submit your report is tomorrow, Thursday 14 August.
A reminder to all SHDF grant recipients:
Grant recipients who have completed delivery of capital works should continue to submit/refine their monthly reports while delivery, financial and lodgement data is being confirmed.
Lodging completed properties on TrustMark
TrustMark lodgement is a key requirement of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund Wave 2 grant funding agreement (GFA).
It’s more than a reporting obligation, it provides evidence that retrofit works are delivered in line with PAS standards and ensures accountability, quality assurance and protection for residents.
To support project progression, we recommend you work with relevant stakeholders to ensure all measures are lodged via TrustMark as you go. Approaching lodgements in this way will help to reduce risks of bottlenecking and delays to your 'completion date' (as clarified below).
As a part of project closure, our teams will also verify and review your TrustMark and DMS data to ensure there are no errors, omissions or inconsistencies in your records. Your project cannot close until this process –called data reconciliation – is complete.
Clarification on your project 'completion date' – tools down and lodgements complete
Under our new ways of working, you should have spoken with your project support officer about your completion date and final delivery numbers.
For clarity, please note that your completion date should reflect:
- the date at which you expect to be both 'tools down' for capital works and
- have completed all required TrustMark lodgements
If you believe the date you've provided may need to be reviewed or revised with the above in mind, please raise this the next time you're speaking with your project support officer.
Support with project closure
Your single point of contact (SPOC) and project support officer (PSO) should be your first port-of-call for any closure-related questions.
They're here to support and guide you through the process and answer any questions that you may have.
Closure resources now available on the Hive
Whether you're nearing your completion date (as detailed above) or ready for closure, we know there are a lot of questions over requirements for your project to officially close and exit from the scheme.
We're pleased to announce that the SHDF Hive now hosts a closure hub with resources to guide and support you through key activities associated with project and scheme closure.
Please note that you will be asked to complete a range of reporting documents as part of project closure, with the support of your SPOC and PSO. The closure hub on the Hive contains live webpages and additional activities and resources may be added over time to better support you as you navigate the closure process.
Key resources available on the hub include guidance on:
Please note: additional activities and resources will be added to the closure hub and checklist over time to better support you to navigate the closure process.
Monthly progress reports – is your project on track?
By now, you should be familiar with your monthly progress report, which is issued at regular intervals by your Salix project support officer.
The report is designed to give you a clear picture of your progress and performance to date and to highlight any variances between your delivery and baseline target.
Reports are based on your most recent DMS upload.
If you have any questions, please contact your project support officer (PSO).
New guidance for Building Safety Regulation (BSR) applications
On Monday 21 July 2025, the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) published new guidance relating to the building control approval application process for new higher-risk buildings.
As such, if you are treating homes affected by the BSR process, we would like to bring to your attention the following guidance:
We would also recommend visiting this CLC webpage for details on the publication, wider guidance and additional resources.
Requirements to lodge ventilation in TrustMark
The department is aware that ventilation measures cannot be lodged on TrustMark’s data warehouse and, therefore, a unique TrustMark reference number cannot be generated for these measures.
As ventilation is an eligible Wave 2 measure, the department still requires you to reflect ventilation measures in your project change requests (PCRs), monthly data uploads (via the DMS) and final reports.
To ensure consistency in your monthly data upload, you’re required to input the TrustMark reference number for the measure where the ventilation system is part of the ventilation strategy. For example, if you installed ventilation measures as part of your cavity wall insulation (CWI) then you would input the TrustMark reference number for CWI when you are required to report your ventilation measures.
- Please note: although we're usually unable to accept duplicate TrustMark numbers, ventilation is currently the only exception
If you have any questions, please reach out to your SPOC in the first instance.
Shining a light on your projects – in the news
We're always keen to celebrate success and spotlight achievements by showcasing your projects to other grant recipients across our network.
Recently, we shared the following stories in the news area of our website, aiming to highlight great performance, interesting challenges and the real impact of these vital schemes:
If you'd like to share news about your project, contact us at communications.housing@salixfinance.co.uk
Showcase your work with a site visit!
A site visit is an exciting opportunity to showcase your project, discuss challenges, opportunities and celebrate successful outcomes for your residents.
By inviting our teams to join you on site, we're able to work with you to create fantastic content such as case studies and news stories that will not only highlight your organisation, but also help others to deliver successful projects in the future.
If you're interested in hosting us, please complete the short form on our website and one of our team will be in touch to arrange next steps.
Unsure if you've missed a communication?
The historic communications webpage on the SHDF Hive details an overview of key communications sent to grant recipients by us (Salix) or the department.
If you're unable to locate or didn't receive a communication listed on the page, please contact your SPOC.
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