Social housing ‘un-decent’ until 2019
By politics.co.uk staff
Over 300,000 social housing properties are still not classed as ‘decent’, according to a public spending watchdog.
The National Audit Office’s (NAO) report into the Decent Homes Programme found its attempts to ensure social housing meets basic standards had made progress.
Eighty-six per cent of social housing was warm, wind and weather tight and with reasonably modern facilities, meeting the ‘decent’ classification, by April 2009.
But that still left 305,000 properties classed as ‘non-decent’, with the estimate by November last year that it would take until 2019 for 100% decency to be achieved. At present 92% of social housing is ‘decent’.
“Hundreds of thousands of families are still living in properties which are not warm, weather tight, or in a reasonable state of repair,” NAO chief Amyas Morse said.
“The Department [for Communities and Local Government’s] (DCLG) efforts have been undermined by weaknesses in the information it holds.”
Mr Morse’s report says weaknesses in the DCLG’s figures have reduced the reliability of the government’s assurances.
It recognised the programme had improved over a million social homes, however, and said improved housing management, tenant involvement and employment opportunities were among its benefits.
