In July 2000 the Government recognised that over 1.5 million households in the UK were living in accommodation that fell below an acceptable living standard.
 
The Government has set a target to ensure that all social housing meets standards of decency by 2010. Social housing means homes that are owned by your local authority or a Registered Social Landlord (RSL). RSLs are also sometimes called Housing Associations. The Wrekin Housing Trust is a RSL.

A decent home is one that is wind and weather tight, warm and has modern facilities.

The basic principles of the Decent Homes Standard are:

It must meet the current statutory minimum standard for housing
Homes which fail to meet this criterion are those containing one or more hazards assessed as serious (‘Category 1’) under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).

It must be in a reasonable state of repair
Homes which fail to meet this standard are those where either:

• one or more of the key building components are old and, because of their condition, need replacing or major repair; or
• two or more of the other building components are old and, because of their condition, need replacing– or major repair

It must have reasonably modern facilities and services
Homes which fail to meet this standard are those which don't have three or more of the following:

• 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 insulation against external noise (where external noise is a problem)
• adequate size and layout of common areas for blocks of flats

It provides a reasonable degree of thermal comfort
This means that your home must have both effective insulation and efficient heating

Find out more about Decent Homes using the links on the right hand side of the page.