Proportion of households living in non-decent homes by tenure
27 April 2023
- 15% of homes in England were classed as non-decent in 2020, although this masks a variation between housing tenures.
- Close to a quarter of private rented homes (23%) were non-decent, compared with 11% of social rented homes.
Non-decent housing can directly affect a person’s health. A non-decent home is one with a hazard or immediate threat to a person’s health, not in a reasonable state of repair, lacking modern facilities or not effectively insulated or heated. For instance, poor insulation can lead to cold and damp homes, which are associated with a range of health problems. A non-decent home can also have hazards that can cause injuries, such as faulty wiring or trip hazards.
This chart shows the proportion of homes classed as non-decent by tenure over time in England. This proportion has fallen from 35% in 2006 to 15% in 2020.
However, the 15% figure masks differences across the different housing tenures. The proportion of non-decent homes was highest in the private rented sector, at 23%, followed by 14% of owner-occupied homes, and only 11% of social rented homes.
All three tenures have improved since 2006, by 24 percentage points for private rented homes, 20 percentage points for owner-occupied homes, and 18 percentage points for social rented homes. The tenures also changed in size over this period, with the private rented sector growing the most overall.
One feature of this 14-year period is that the rate of improvement in the quality of housing has slowed markedly. Between 2006 and 2012, homes counted as non-decent fell by 13 percentage points; however this was followed by a drop of only 7 percentage points in the following 8 years.
The health risk posed by non-decent homes remains a significant concern. While the number has been decreasing in England, nearly one in six homes is still classed as non-decent. The rate of improvement has also slowed in recent years, showing the limited impacts of current policy approaches and the need to better address this moving forwards.
- Non-decent homes are defined as those with a Category 1 hazard – as assessed by the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) – that are not in a reasonable state of repair, lack reasonably modern facilities or are not warm enough (do not provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort).
Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, English Housing Survey, 2022.
