Rural England
Non-decent homes
Key points
- The proportion of homes which are 'non-decent' is much higher in the more rural areas: 65% of homes in the most rural areas are non-decent compared with around 50% in village centres and 35% in rural residential and urban areas.
- See the UK indicator on non-decent homes.
Graph 1: Compared to urban
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Rural/urban ratios (urban = 10)
On most poverty and social exclusion indicators, rural areas have 'better scores' than urban areas. The purpose of the table below is to differentiate between those subjects where rural areas are 'a bit better' and those where rural areas are 'a lot better'. It does so by presenting the rural statistics for the indicator as a proportion of the urban statistics. So, for example, a rural 'score' of 6 in the table below means that the rural statistic is around 60% of its urban equivalent.
| The most rural areas | 20 |
|---|---|
| Village centres | 16 |
| Rural residential | 10 |
Definitions and data sources
The graphs
The graph shows the proportion of homes by type of area which are 'non-decent'. 'Non-decent' homes are those which do not meet the government's standard for 'decent homes' whereby housing should: be above the a statutory minimum standard (i.e. be fit for habitation); provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort; be in a reasonable state of repair; and provide reasonably modern facilities and services. Note that in 2006, the government changed the definitions for the first two of these criteria, in particular replacing the previous minimum standard criterion as the statutory element by a newly defined Housing and Safety Rating System. The net effect of this change was to increase the number of homes classified as 'non decent'.
Level of the data
Small area urban/rural classifications, where the surveyor of the property allocates it to one of six categories, three of which are rural. Note that this classification is specific to the English House Condition Survey and is not the same as the government's 2004 classification system for small areas.
Source
English House Condition Survey, DCLG. To improve its statistical reliability, the data is the average for 2006 and 2007.
The numbers
| The most rural areas | 66% |
|---|---|
| Village centres | 52% |
| Rural residential | 34% |
| Rural (combined) | 43% |
| Urban | 33% |