industry news
Charity says more than four in 10 homes fall below new standard
M
ore than four in 10 homes in Britain do not reach acceptable standards across a range of measures according
to a report by Shelter. The national housing charity along with
Ipsos MORI has developed a Living Home Standard to assess housing according to its affordability, Decent Home conditions, stability, space and neighbourhood. This is a wider set of measures than the decent homes standard. Shelter said affordability was the biggest
problem and people should “live and thrive” in homes, not just “get by". Overall, 43 per cent of homes in Britain did not meet at least part of its standard. Chief executive of the charity Campbell
Robb, said: “When Shelter was founded, it was with the hope that one day everyone in the country would have access to a place they can truly call home. “But the sad truth is that far too many people
in Britain right now are living in homes that just aren’t up to scratch – from the thousands of families forced to cope with poor conditions, to a generation of renters forking out most of their income on housing each month and unable to save for the future.”
Failures
After establishing the standard, a survey of almost 2,000 people found that 43 per cent of people lived in homes that failed part of the requirements. Over a quarter failed on affordability, while
almost a fifth failed the standard because of poor conditions, with problems including persistent pests, damp and safety hazards. One in 10 failed because of insecurity about the period of occupancy. The highest number of homes failing the
standard was in London (73 per cent), followed by Wales and the East Midlands, where the figure was 49 per cent. The smallest percentage of failures was recorded in Yorkshire and the Humber at 27 per cent. Shelter found residents were most
concerned about the rising cost of their homes, or they were unable to meet their rent or mortgage without regularly cutting back on essentials, or they felt they did not have enough control over how long they could live in their home. Each of the five elements in the standard is
measured according to certain criteria – for example, the essentials of “space” include having sufficient bedrooms for the household and space for the whole household to spend time together in the same room. Other aspects included having outdoor
space, and enough space for children to study and adults to work.
Five factors
The range of measures developed to make the new Living Home Standard are:
• Affordability: Factors included how much was left for essentials, savings and social activities after paying for rent or mortgage.
• Decent conditions: Words like “safe”, “warm” and “secure” were among the words used by the public to describe what makes a home meet this criterion.
• Space: Adequate space was considered crucial for wellbeing, especially mental and social wellbeing.
• Stability: this was often described as the extent to which people felt they could make the property they lived in a “home";
• Neighbourhood: Living in an area where people felt safe and secure was considered particularly important. People also wanted to be close enough to work, family and friends and the services they need.
Of the five criteria, affordability was consistently rated as the most important aspect of an acceptable home and 27 per cent of homes failed at least one of the affordability specifications. Shelter said 24 per cent of people were not
able to save anything for unexpected costs after meeting their rent or mortgage, and 23 per cent worried that their rent or mortgage
charges might become difficult to pay if they increased.
Cut backs
A further 18 per cent of people could not meet their housing costs without regularly cutting back on essentials like food or heating, and 20 per cent could not do this without missing out on social activities, commented the charity. Nearly one in five, or 18 per cent of homes
failed the criteria for decent conditions, with renters twice as likely as homeowners to live in places that failed on this element of the standard. More than one in 10 people lived in homes
failing the criteria for space. Tenants in social housing fared particularly badly on space, with one in five living in homes with inadequate space. On stability, one in four private renters felt
they did not have enough control over how long they could stay in their home. Shelter has called for stable rental contracts that last for five years and protect tenants against unaffordable rent increases. Mr Robb called on the Government,
businesses and other charities to work with the organisation to increase the number of homes that meet the Living Home Standard. (See also story on page 6)
www.housingmmonline.co.uk | HMM November 2016 | 5
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