United Kingdom
Non-decent homes
Key points
- The 'decent homes' standard is the primary indicator of stock condition applied in England. A dwelling is defined as 'decent' if it meets the minimum statutory fitness standard, is in a reasonable state of repair, has reasonably modern facilities and provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.
- 27% of homes in England in 2005 were classified as non-decent compared 45% in 1996.
- Rates of non-decency are highest in the private rented sector. However, because owner-occupation is by far the most common tenure, it still accounts for two-thirds of all non-decent homes.
- Poor households are somewhat more likely to live in a non-decent home than richer households: 35% of households in the poorest fifth compared with 28% of those on average incomes and 23% of those in the richest fifth. But there are substantial numbers of households in non-decent homes at all levels of income.
- 'Lack of thermal comfort' is the main reason for homes failing to meet the decency standard.
- The proportion of homes in each region which are non-decent varies from 35% in London to 23% in the North East to a third. There is no obvious geographic pattern to the differences.
Graph 1: Over time
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Graph 2: By tenure
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Graph 3: By income
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Graph 4: By reason
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Graph 5: By region
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Why this indicator was originally chosen
The conditions in which people live affect their health, relations between household members, and the development of children.
Definitions and data sources
The first graph shows the proportion of homes deemed to be 'non-decent', with the data shown separately by tenure.
The second graph shows, for the latest year, the shares of 'non-decent' homes in each tenure.
The third graph shows how the proportion of homes that are 'non-decent' varies by the income of household. Note that the allocation of households to income quintiles uses 'equivalised household income', which means that the household incomes have been adjusted to put them on a like-for-like basis given the size and composition of the households. This means that the results are somewhat different than those in some other publications which use unadjusted household incomes.
The fourth graph shows, for the latest year, the number of 'non-decent' homes by reason for their non-decency.
The fifth graph shows how the proportion of homes that are 'non-decent' varies by region.
To improve their statistical reliability, the data in the third to fifth graphs is the average for 2003 to 2005.
'Non-decent' homes are those which do not meet the government's standard for 'decent homes' whereby housing should: be above the statutory minimum standard (i.e. be fit for habitation); be in a reasonable state of repair; provide reasonably modern facilities and services; and provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.
The data source for all the graphs is the English House Condition Survey (EHCS) and relates to England.
Overall adequacy of the indicator: medium. EHCS is a well-established, regular government survey, designed to be nationally representative but there is no direct link with the subject of poverty and social exclusion.
External links
- For a wide-ranging discussion of all aspects of housing, including its links with poverty, see the New Policy Institute 2006 report for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation entitled Housing and neighbourhoods monitor.
- See the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report entitled Cold comfort: The social and environmental determinants of excess winter deaths in England.
- See Imperial College research on the links between poor housing and poor health.
- See the Energy Saving Trust report entitled Health impact evaluation of Warm Front.
- See the ofgem 2005 social action strategy.
- See the National Energy Action site.
- See the eaga partnership site.
- See the Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform fuel poverty website and the DEFRA fuel poverty website.
Relevant 2007 Public Service Agreements
Overall aim: Increase long-term housing supply and affordability
Lead department
Department for Communities and Local Government
Official national targets
Increase the number of net additional homes provided per annum to 240,000 by 2016.
Increase the number of gross affordable homes provided per annum to 70,000 by 2010-11 including 45,000 social homes.
Halve the number of households in temporary accommodation to 50,500 households by 2010.
By March 2011, 80% of local planning authorities to have adopted the necessary Development Plan Documents, in accordance with their agreed Local Development Scheme.
Other indicators of progress
Trends in affordability.
Efficiency rating of new homes.
Previous 2004 targets
By 2010, bring all social housing into decent condition with most of this improvement taking place in deprived areas, and for vulnerable households in the private sector, including families with children, increase the proportion who live in homes that are in decent condition.
Eliminate fuel poverty in vulnerable households in England by 2010 in line with the Government's Fuel Poverty Strategy objective Joint with the department for Trade and Industry.
Relevant government policies
The numbers
Graph 1
| Year | Private rented | Social rented | Owner occupied | All tenures |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 62% | 53% | 40% | 45% |
| 2001 | 51% | 39% | 29% | 33% |
| 2003 | 48% | 35% | 28% | 31% |
| 2004 | 43% | 31% | 27% | 29% |
| 2005 | 41% | 29% | 25% | 27% |
Graph 2
| Millions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Private rented | Social rented | Owner occupied |
| 1.0M | 1.2M | 3.8M |
Graph 3
| Poorest fifth | 35% |
|---|---|
| 2nd | 31% |
| 3rd | 28% |
| 4th | 26% |
| Richest fifth | 23% |
Graph 1
| Millions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Reason | Private rented | Social rented | Owner occupied |
| Thermal comfort | 0.7M | 0.9M | 3.0M |
| Repair | 0.4M | 0.2M | 1.1M |
| Fitness | 0.2M | 0.2M | 0.5M |
| Modern facilities | 0.1M | 0.2M | 0.2M |
Graph 5
| East | 25% |
|---|---|
| East Midlands | 26% |
| London | 35% |
| North East | 23% |
| North West | 32% |
| South East | 27% |
| South West | 32% |
| West Midlands | 29% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 30% |