A Decent Home - the definition and guidance for measurement

A Decent Home - the definition and guidance for measurement

Section 1: Introduction

Section 2: What is a “Decent Home”?

Section 3: What is a decent home? – the detailed definition

Section 4: National measurement of the baseline position and monitoring of progress

Section 5: Social Landlords' assessment of baseline position and predictions of progress

Section 6: Conclusion

Appendix A: Component lifetimes used in assessment of the disrepair criterion of a decent home.

Appendix B: Definition of "in poor condition" used in the disrepair criterion of a decent home

Further Information

Section 1: Introduction

1. In July 2000, following its Spending Review, the Government announced a significant increase in resources for housing, and especially social housing. This came on top of other substantial increases announced in 1998.

2. As part of its desire to link increased spending to better outcomes, the Government established a target to:

“ensure that all social housing meets set standards of decency by 2010, by reducing the number of households living in social housing that does not meet these standards by a third between 2001 and 2004, with most of the improvement taking place in the most deprived local authority areas”.

3. This paper provides guidance for Local Authorities and Registered Social Landlords to help them quantify the level of non-decent stock in their area and measure progress towards eliminating non-decent housing.

4. Section 2 provides a short summary definition of a decent home, which may be useful to share with tenants and members.

5. The paper then provides detailed information on:

interpreting the definition of the decent home including quantifying the level of non-decent social housing locally through a stock condition survey and other local information.

mechanisms for monitoring the target nationally and locally

predicting future levels of non-decent social housing.

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Section 2: What is a “Decent Home”?

6. A decent home is one which meets all of the following four criteria:

A: It meets the current statutory minimum standard for housing. At present this is the fitness standard: dwellings below the standard are those defined as unfit under current legislation. The Government plans to move to a statutory standard based on the new housing health and safety rating system - but this will require primary legislation.

B: It is in a reasonable state of repair: dwellings failing on this point will be those where either:

one or more key building components are old and need replacing (where key means external components, electrics and gas heating source ); or

two or more other building components are old and need replacing.

C: It has reasonably modern facilities and services – dwellings failing on this point are those that lack three or more of the following:

a reasonably modern kitchen (20 years old or less);

a kitchen with adequate space and layout;

a reasonably modern bathroom (30 years old or less);

an appropriately located bathroom and WC;

adequate noise insulation (where external noise/ neighbourhood noise is a problem);

adequate size and layout of common areas for blocks of flats.

D. Provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort – dwellings failing the standard are those where the occupants are unable to heat their homes to a reasonable level.

7. These criteria have been measured in the Department's English House Condition Survey (EHCS)¹ for a number of years. For B and C, the detailed definitions have been adapted from those used in the survey.

8. The Government announced a significant increase in resources for housing in July 2000. This, taken with increases announced as part of the Capital Receipts Initiative and the 1998 Spending Review, will allow the number of non-decent social sector homes to be reduced by one third by 2004. This Government target relates to social housing only, but the concept of a decent home applies equally to privately rented and owner occupied housing.

Notes on the above:
¹ English House Condition Survey 1996 Energy Report, ISBN 1 85112 458 6 £65, available from the DTLR Sales Centre
English House Condition Survey - ISBN 0 11 753458 7, £50, available from TSO, and associated summaries are available from the Housing Support Unit, see Further Information at foot of page for addresses.

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Section 3: What is a decent home? – the detailed definition

9. This section provides detailed definitions of each of the criteria of a decent home. It explains how assessments can be made locally against each, primarily through a stock condition survey. If social landlords are following the guidance set out in the Department’s Collecting, Managing and Using Housing Stock Information² the information required to assess individual dwellings against this standard should be available.

10. Authorities may in practice deliver housing above the level of a decent home using their own standards and definitions. However, in order to achieve a consistent definition across all authorities, a common classification needs to be applied for the national target. The definitions in this guidance have not been invented from scratch. They are consistent with those used in calculating the backlog of renovations and improvements required for Local Authority stock and the allocation of the Major Repairs Allowance (MRA) to local authorities. The detailed technical descriptions used have been included in the EHCS for many years.

Criterion A: Is above the current statutory minimum standard for housing.

11. The current statutory minimum standard for housing is the Fitness Standard. Dwellings that are defined as unfit under current legislation automatically fail this criterion and therefore also the decent home standard. Local authorities and RSLs should already be collecting information on the level of unfitness in their stock during a stock condition survey. This information has been reported annually for many years as part of the Housing Investment Programme.

12. The fitness standard will be used for the immediate future. However, it should be noted that the Government intends to replace the fitness standard with a standard based on the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS)³, developed and piloted by the Legal Research Institute at the University of Warwick. The HHSRS is an evidence based tool for assessing the risks to health and safety of housing condition and design, and is seen as the basis for the replacement of the current fitness standard under the Housing Act 1985. The Department has just issued a consultation document setting out how we envisage the HHSRS being used in enforcement. This would require changes to legislation.

Notes on the above:
² Collecting Managing and Using Housing Stock Information: A Good Practice Guide (3 vols)
Vol 1 : An overview of the Key Principals - ISBN 1 85112 423 3, £15
Vol 2 : Key Principals and methodological issues - ISBN 1 85112 424 1, £20
Vol 3 : Specifying Stock Surveys - ISBN 1 85112 425 X, £15

³ Housing Health and Safety Rating System: Guidance, (Version 1) - ISBN 1 85112 405 5, £20
Housing Health and Safety Rating System: Quick Guide (available as a summary from Housing Support Unit).

The above reports are available from the DTLR Sales Centre, the associated summaries from the Housing Support Unit, see Further Information at foot of page for addresses.

13. The Department’s guidance on Collecting, managing and using housing stock information sets out a number of options by which social landlords could collect information which would help assess how their stock rates using the HHSRS.

Requirements of the Current Fitness Standard:

14. A dwelling is fit for human habitation unless, in the opinion of the local housing authority, it fails to meet one or more of the requirements below and by reason of that failure is not reasonably suitable for occupation:

it is structurally stable ;

it is free from disrepair ;

it is free from dampness prejudicial to health of occupants (if any);

it has adequate provision for lighting, heating and ventilation;

it has an adequate piped supply of wholesome water;

there are satisfactory facilities in the dwelling house for the preparation and cooking of food, including a sink with a satisfactory supply of hot and cold water ;

it has a suitably located WC for the exclusive use of the occupants (if any);

it has, for the exclusive use of the occupants (if any), a suitably located fixed bath or shower and wash-hand basin, each of which is provided with a satisfactory supply of hot and cold water;

it has an effective system for the draining of foul, waste and surface water .

15. Assessment against these criteria should form part of a standard stock condition survey.

Criterion B: Is in a reasonable state of repair

16. The second criterion of a decent home is that it must be in a reasonable state of repair. Dwellings which fail this criterion are those where either:

one or more key building components are old and in poor condition; or

two or more other building components are old and in poor condition.

17. Each of the parameters used in this definition is described below.

Building components

18. Building components are the elements which make up a dwelling. They comprise structural parts (eg the wall structure, the roof structure); other external elements (eg roof covering, chimneys); and internal services and amenities (eg, kitchens, heating systems).

19. Key building components are defined as those, which, if in poor condition, could have an immediate impact on the integrity of the building and cause further deterioration in other components. They are the external components plus internal components that have potential safety implications. If any of these components are both old and in such poor condition that they need to be replaced or require a major repair now, then the dwelling is classified as not being in a reasonable state of repair and therefore, not decent.

20. The key components are :

Walls

Roof structure and covering

Windows/doors

Chimneys

Gas central heating boilers / gas fires

Electrics

21. The other components are those that have a less immediate impact on the integrity of the dwelling. Their combined effect is therefore considered. A dwelling is therefore defined as not in a reasonable state of repair (and hence not decent) if 2 or more of these components are both old and in such poor condition that they need to be replaced or require major repair now.

"Old and in poor condition"

22. Key components must be "old" and in poor condition to render the dwelling non-decent on grounds of disrepair. Components that meet one or other of these criteria would not, in themselves, cause the dwelling to fail the standard. This is so that the decent home standard can be used as an investment planning tool - it is more likely that landlords will be able to predict component failure after the component has reached a certain age than predicting early failures. It is not reasonable to suppose all early failures can be predicted.

23. A component is defined as “old” if it is older than its expected or standard lifetime. The component lifetimes used in the definition of a decent home are the same as those used in the calculation of the Major Repairs Allowance (allocated to Local Authorities to finance newly arising programme renewals to their stock in the long term). They were finalised following consultation on the methodology proposed to use in calculating and allocating the Major Repairs Allowance in November 1999.

24. Component lifetimes differ for different components and by type of dwelling and those used in the definition of a decent home are shown in the table at appendix A.

25. This information should be available for all main building components from a stock survey. Surveyors should be able to judge the current age of the building component from their survey inspection. During the analysis of the survey data, the age recorded should be compared with the standard lifetime. All components which are older than their standard lifetimes have the potential to be non-decent.

26. Components are defined as in poor condition if, at the time of inspection, they need major work - either full replacement or a major repair. The definitions used in this classification are attached at appendix B. During a standard stock survey a surveyor should be able to assess whether there is an immediate need to replace or carry out a major repair to a building component.

Criterion C: Has reasonably modern facilities and services

27. The third criterion of a decent home is that is must have reasonably modern facilities and services. Under this definition a dwelling is considered not to provide reasonably modern facilities and services if it lacks three or more of the following:

a kitchen which is 20 years old or less;

a kitchen with adequate space and layout. (An example of a kitchen failing this would be one that was too small to contain all the required items - sink, cupboards cooker space, worktops etc. appropriate to the size of the dwelling);

a bathroom which is 30 years old or less ;

an appropriately located bathroom and WC. Under the EHCS, a dwelling would fail this criterion if for example, the main bathroom or WC is located in a bedroom or accessed through a bedroom (unless the bedroom is not used or the dwelling is for a single person). A dwelling would also fail if the main WC is external or located on a different floor to the nearest wash hand basin or if a WC without a wash hand basin opens on to a kitchen in an inappropriate area e.g. next to the food preparation area;

adequate noise insulation. Under the EHCS a dwelling would fail this if the surveyor and residents report noise problems and has only single glazed windows;

adequate size and layout of common entrance areas for blocks of flats. The EHCS would consider a dwelling to fail this element if there are narrow accessways with awkward corners and turnings, steep staircases, inadequate landings, absence of handrails, low headroom etc.

28. All of the above should be readily identified within a stock survey. These definitions have been part of the English House Condition Survey⁴for many years.

29. During the consultation on the formulation of the MRA allocations, it became apparent that, in addition to replacing kitchens and bathrooms when they had ceased to function effectively, tenants and landlords wanted to replace them in advance of this to provide more modern facilities. This is reflected in the definition of a decent home by including as 2 elements of the modern facilities criterion, the need for the kitchen and bathroom to be reasonably modern (less than 20 and 30 years old respectively).

Notes on the above:
⁴English House Condition Survey - ISBN 0 11 753458 7, £50, available from TSO, associated summary available from the Housing Support Unit.

Criteria D: Provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort

30. We consider that homes that cannot be heated to a reasonable level do not provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort for those households. Whether the home can be heated to a reasonable level depends on the cost of providing the heating required and the ability of the household to afford it. Households that cannot afford to heat their homes are considered to be ‘fuel poor’. Fuel poverty is dependent on the energy efficiency of the home (eg the SAP⁵ rating) and the circumstances of the household (including household size, composition and income). A household is defined as fuel poor if they need to spend 10% or more of their income (including housing costs) on achieving a reasonable heating regime⁶.

31. The Government's proposed Fuel Poverty strategy was published for consultation in February 2001. Comments are currently being received and analysed. The draft strategy outlined the proposed measures for combating fuel poverty which included action by LAs and RSLs to improve energy efficiency of their own housing stock and grants provided by LAs to tackle disrepair and poor energy efficiency in private sector dwellings whose households are eligible to such assistance.

32. These, and the other measures proposed in the Fuel Poverty strategy are designed to eliminate fuel poverty within vulnerable households by 2010 in England. LAs and RSLs will play a key role in eliminating fuel poverty in social sector homes through investment in their housing stock.

33. To ensure consistency and readacross with other Government strategies and objectives, the thermal comfort criterion of the decent home standard relates to fuel poverty. Using fuel poverty to quantify the number of homes that are non-decent on grounds of thermal comfort ensures the prioritisation of energy efficiency improvement work, while remaining consistent and helping to deliver Government's Fuel Poverty strategy. It encourages joined up working both nationally and locally and benefits people most in need of energy efficiency improvements.

34. When Local Authorities were consulted on the draft 2001 HIP package, some respondents remarked that it would be difficult for some LAs and RSLs to quantify the number of households in fuel poverty, and the thermal comfort criterion should be defined around criteria that are simply related to the housing stock alone. To respond to this, this guidance provides examples of how social landlords might quantify the level of fuel poverty in their stock - see from paragraph 39.

Notes on the above:
⁵Standard Assessment Procedure is based on the calculated energy cost for space and water heating and is the Government recommended method of producing energy rating for a dwelling.

⁶This is generally defined as 21 C in the living room and 18 C in the other occupied rooms - the temperatures recommended by the World Health Organisation. The period for which these regimes should be achieved are dependent on the household type and reflect the likely period of time spent in the home.

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Section 4: National measurement of the baseline position and monitoring of progress

35. Progress towards this target will be monitored nationally using the English House Condition Survey (EHCS) - a national survey of dwellings, run by the DTLR, which collects a wide range of detailed information on physical characteristics and condition of the dwelling as well as information regarding the household living in the dwellings.

36. The last EHCS was carried out in 1996 and included about 12,000 dwellings: it estimated that in 1996 1.4 million LA and 280 thousand RSL homes failed the decent home standard as defined above. The 2001 EHCS is currently underway and will provide data for about 20,000 dwellings; results are expected to be available next year. This will set the baseline or starting position for the Department’s target. After 2001, the EHCS will be carried out annually and will provide robust estimates of the level of non-decent homes in the social sector at the national level to enable monitoring of progress towards the target.

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Section 5: Social Landlords' assessment of baseline position and predictions of progress

37. The Department does not propose, at this stage, to cascade specific targets for improvement to individual LAs and RSLs. However, the Department and the Corporation do expect LAs and RSLs to plan and monitor progress towards making their stock decent. Local authorities will be required to report on their progress as part of their HRA Business Plan.

38. This will require the establishment of local baselines, and plans to monitor progress. In most cases sample or formula based estimates will be appropriate. The previous section explained how individual dwellings can be assessed against each of the criteria of a decent home using results from a standard stock survey. This section discusses different approaches for estimating levels of fuel poverty, and explains how estimates of future trends in the level of non-decent housing can be predicted. As we approach 2010, when all non-decent social sector housing should have been tackled, it may be appropriate to have a more precise approach to monitoring.

Potential approaches to estimating the level of fuel poverty

39. Estimating the level of fuel poverty within an area requires information about the energy efficiency of the housing stock, together with information about the households occupying the dwellings. The energy efficiency of the dwelling can be obtained through analysis following a standard stock condition survey. The household information required would not automatically form part of a traditional stock condition survey but there are a number of sources that could be used:

It may be possible to undertake household surveys for the same dwellings as included in the stock condition surveys. Such surveys could capture information on the composition of the household, and income levels. This information could then be related directly with the energy efficiency of the dwelling, as judged through the stock condition survey to assess whether the household is in fuel poverty. This is the approach used in the English House Condition Survey, which is the mechanism to be used in monitoring the progress towards the decent home target at the national level.

It may be possible to gather similar information on household composition and income from administrative records held by the authority. For example, such records may identify the number of people in the household and also may indicate levels of income - for example whether households are on housing benefit. This information could be related directly to the information collected through the stock survey on the energy efficiency of the dwelling to assess whether or not the household is fuel poor.

It is possible that in the future information on household income at sub-district level will be made available through the Neighbourhood Statistics Service . If the information is made available at a sufficiently detailed level, it would be possible to assume all households within this area have the same "average" income. This information could be used, together with information gathered through the stock survey on the energy efficiency of the dwelling, to estimate levels of fuel poverty in an area.

In the absence of any information relating to household composition and income, it is still possible to obtain an estimate of the number of fuel poor households living in LA stock in an area, if the energy efficiency of the housing stock is known. This is because there is a reasonably linear relationship in the social sector stock between fuel poverty and the energy efficiency as measured by the SAP rating (which is obtainable direct from a stock survey alone). The following table shows that in 1996 there was a direct relationship between SAP level and fuel poverty among social rented dwellings at the national level.

SAP % LA households who were
fuel poor (England 1996) % RSL households who were
fuel poor (England 1996)

20 or less 81 57

21-30 67 37

31-40 42 42

41-50 32 30

51-60 18 12

61 or more 10 4

Total 35 25

40. These relationships between SAP and fuel poverty were measured in 1996 and it is likely that the number of fuel poor households has decreased since then. It is estimated that between 1996 and 1998, the proportion of LA tenants who were fuel poor decreased from 35% to 22%. The proportion of RSL tenants stayed about the same (25% in 1996, 27% in 1998).

Predicting Future Progress

41. For Business Planning to address the problem of non-decent housing locally, social landlords need to understand the effect of different investment strategies on the level of non-decent homes. This section explains how stock survey information can be used to estimate likely future progress in making homes decent.

42. To do this, two things are required:

estimate whether dwellings that are currently decent not due to receive investment will deteriorate sufficiently to become non-decent in the short to medium term;

estimate whether expenditure on dwellings makes non-decent dwellings decent and prevents "decent" dwellings from becoming non-decent in the short to medium term.

43. The net effect of these two processes is the change in the number of non-decent homes each year. Year on year progress would be simple to measure if a stock survey was repeated each year but this would not help in predicting how investment plans would change the number of non-decent homes over the short and medium term. Nor is an annual stock condition survey necessary to estimate year on year change provided there is good information about the dwellings on which investment is taking place together with a good property data base that includes data about the age of building components and their life expectancy.

44. Dwellings however do not become non-decent overnight and therefore it may be helpful to classify dwellings into one of three categories:

Non-decent - a dwelling that fails now on one or more of the above criteria.

Potentially non-decent - a dwelling that currently meets the standard of decency (ie meets all of the four criteria above) but is likely to deteriorate and become non-decent if no investment is made in the short term.

Decent - a dwelling which does not require investment even in the short run to prevent it becoming non-decent.

Estimating Deterioration

45. Predicting the level and rate of deterioration is the most difficult part of the exercise. The aim is to estimate the change in condition of those dwellings in which there is no investment year on year. For some aspects of the decent home standard, lack of investment will result in no change in condition - eg where the standard is based on some “design” feature of the dwelling.

46. But even where deterioration would be expected to take place an attempt at its estimation can only be made for two components of the decent home definition – those in a reasonable state of repair and lack of modern amenities. This is because the dividing line between a home being decent and non-decent is, for disrepair of building components, a combination of component age and condition . For modern facilities it is largely their age alone.

Dwellings in a reasonable state of repair

47. A dwelling fails this criterion if building elements are old and in poor condition. These should both be measured as part of a standard stock condition survey.

48. Building elements which are judged to be older than their standard life but are not in need of replacement now are considered to be potentially non-decent. In a stock survey, surveyors should estimate individual elements' remaining life ie the length of time that the element can survive without major investment before it is likely to fail and require replacement or major repair and therefore becomes non-decent.

49. For those elements which are younger than their standard life, it should be possible to assess, by comparison with expected element lifetimes, when the element might require replacement/major work and therefore potentially be classes as non-decent.

Has modern facilities and services

50. A dwelling is defined as non-decent if it lacks three or more of the following:

a kitchen which is 20 years old or less;

a kitchen with adequate space and layout;

a bathroom which is 30 years old or less;

an appropriately located bathroom and WC;

adequate noise insulation (where external noise is a problem);

adequate size and layout of common entrance areas for blocks of flats.

51. Many of these elements are one-off improvements, which, once a dwelling has them, are unlikely to change. Only elements a) and c) of this criterion are exceptions to this. The current age of kitchens and bathrooms are measured as part of a stock survey. For kitchens and bathrooms aged less than 20 and 30 years respectively, it will be possible to identify the time at which they reach these ages. If, at this time the dwelling lacks three or more of the above, it will be classified as non-decent.

Fitness

52. It is more difficult to predict whether a fit dwelling will become unfit in the future. Some of the building features included in the fitness standard are not subject to deterioration over time. But where deterioration does occur it is difficult to predict. The only way to try and predict how many dwellings become unfit is to monitor the net change over time in the number of unfit dwellings. Provided you know how many unfit dwellings you have made fit and how many unfit dwellings you started with you can assess how many became unfit during the period. For example in a stock of 100 dwellings you start with 10 unfit dwellings. In the monitoring period 10 are made fit but at the end of the period you still have 10 that are unfit. You therefore know that 10/90 = 11% of your fit stock became unfit over a given period of time. This general rate of deterioration could then be applied to your population of fit dwellings.

Provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort

53. A stock survey should provide information that enables the energy efficiency of the dwelling to be calculated. It is debatable whether the energy efficiency of dwellings deteriorates over time as a result of changes to the building fabric. Ageing heating systems will have an impact but it is difficult to predict the extent to which they become less efficient. Therefore it could be assumed that levels of energy efficiency do not change.

Predicting impact of investment

54. Having predicted the number of dwellings that would become non-decent as the result of no investment, the impact of different investment strategies on the future condition of your stock also needs to be estimated.

55. For dwellings receiving investment you will need to know whether the dwelling is non-decent, potentially non–decent or decent before that investment is made. You will need to know whether the work carried out changes the age of major building components and / or increases their remaining life. Where a dwelling is non-decent because it has some inherent design defect you will need to know whether that has been remedied. In the case of thermal comfort you will need to know whether the work has increased the energy efficiency rating.

56. To predict the impact of future investment it is helpful to use the threefold classification in paragraph 44. For non-decent stock upon which criteria do the dwellings fail the decent home standard? What investment is appropriate and sufficient to make the dwellings decent?

57. If you invest on potentially non-decent stock, you need to know upon which criteria the dwelling “has the potential” to fail the decent home standard and decide what investment is appropriate and sufficient to prevent deterioration of these dwellings into non-decency. If you invest in decent stock, what levels and types of investment are required in the future to ensure these dwellings remain decent?

58. The relative impacts of investing in the three categories of stock are something that should be considered as part of the optional appraisal of the Business Planning process. One criterion to consider in this option appraisal will be the extent to which the number of non-decent dwellings is reduced. This will influence decisions on level of investment on the decent, potentially non-decent and currently non-decent stock. As part of your Business Planning, you will need to estimate future levels of resources available and you may need to explore options for maximising these.

59. Once you have decided the investment plan and estimated how this will affect the level of non-decent housing, you will need to take account of exogenous factors that will affect the level of non-decent housing e.g. the level of stock losses and gains - such as demolition, RTB and LSVT.

60. It will be necessary to carry out a survey periodically to re-quantify the number of non-decent homes.

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Section 6: Conclusion

61. This paper has provided guidance on the measurement and subsequent use of information on decent homes. It is for both local authorities and RSLs to help them monitor the level of non-decent homes and consider options for tackling these. It has explained that:

40% social sector stock was non-decent in 1996;

the English House Condition Survey (EHCS) will be used to monitor progress towards the national PSA target;

LAs and RSLs should monitor locally through:

* local stock surveys and other information ( to provide detailed understanding of the level, location and type of non-decent housing stock);
* estimating the likely level of deterioration of their stock if no investment is made;
* estimating the effect of different investment options on the level, location and type of non-decent stock.

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Appendix A: Component lifetimes used in assessment of the disrepair criterion of a decent home.

The following table shows the component lifetimes used to assess whether a dwelling is in disrepair. Dwellings which fail this criterion are those where either:

1 or more key building components are old and in poor condition; or

2 or more other building components are old and in poor condition

(See from paragraph 16.)

These lifetimes are the same as those used to calculate the Major Repairs Allowance and were agreed following consultation with Local Authorities in November 1999.

Lifetimes used Houses and bungalows All flats in blocks of
below 6 storeys All flats in blocks of
6 or more storeys

Wall structure 80 80 50

Lintels 60 60 60

Spalling brickwork 30 30 30

Wall finish 60 60 30

Roof structure 50 30 30

Roof finish 50 30 30

Chimney 50 50 n/a

Windows 40 30 30

External doors 40 30 30

Kitchen ⁷ 30 30 30

Bathrooms⁷ 40 40 40

Heating – central heating gas boiler 15 15 15

Heating – central heating distribution system 40 40 40

Heating – other 30 30 30

Electrical systems 30 30 30

Notes on the above table:
⁷ Kitchens are assumed to require replacing on grounds of repair every 30 years, bathrooms every 40 years. Therefore the age criteria in the disrepair category are set at 30 and 40 years respectively. These lifetimes were agreed following consultation on the Major Repairs Allowance. However, it is clear that social landlords and tenants prefer these amenities to be replaced more frequently, to enable them to be maintained at a reasonably modern standard. Thus different ages are required for kitchens and bathrooms under the "reasonably modern amenities and services" criteria (20 and 30 years respectively).

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Appendix B: Definition of "in poor condition" used in the disrepair criterion of a decent home

The following table sets out the definitions used within the disrepair criteria to identify whether building components are "in poor condition". These are consistent with EHCS definitions.

During a stock condition survey, the surveyors should assess the extent to which individual building components require immediate work. Their judgement should be used to assess whether the components should be classified as in poor condition or not. The general line used in the EHCS is that where a component requires some work, repair should be prescribed unless:

the component is sufficiently damaged that it is impossible to repair

the component is unsuitable, and would be even it were repaired, either because the material has deteriorated or because the component was never suitable.

even if the component were repaired now, it would still need to be replaced within 5 years.

Definition of "in poor condition"

Wall structure Replace 10% or more or repair 30% or more

Wall finish Replace / repoint / renew 50% or more

Chimneys 1chimney need partial rebuilding or more

Roof structure Replace 50% or more or strengthen 30% or more

Roof covering Replace 50% or more

Windows Replace 2 windows or more

External doors Replace 1 door or more

Kitchen Major repair or replace 3 or more items out of the 6 (cold water drinking supply, hot water, sink, cooking provision, cupboards, worktop)

Bathroom Replace 2 or more items (bath, wash hand basin, WC)

Heating major repair to boiler; distribution system or gas fire

Rewiring Major repair to electrics required

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Further Information

Further copies of this draft Guidance are available from the DTLR:

Housing Support Unit:
Zone 2/C6, Eland House
Bressenden Place
London SW1E 5DU

Tel: 020 7944 3257
Fax : 020 7944 4527
email: h_r_summaries@dtlr.gov.uk

Copies of research associated summaries are also available from the address above.

DTLR reports are available from:

DTLR Sales Centre
Cambertown House
Commercial Road
Goldthorpe Industrial Estate
Goldthorpe
Rotherham
South Yorkshire
S63 9BL

Tel: 01709 891318
Fax : 01709 881673

TSO reports are available from:

The Stationery Office Ltd
The Publications Centre
PO Box 29
Norwich NR3 1GN

Tel: 0870 600 5522

http://www.dltr.gov.uk/