"People living in homes which do not meet their accessibility needs cannot just wait for years and years, clinging to the hope that this change might happen at some point in the future; their need is desperate and urgent."
- Millie Brown - Centre for Ageing Better
Up to 885,000 people could now be living in accessible and adaptable housing if planned changes to minimum building standards had been implemented as intended, according to new analysis by the Centre for Ageing Better and Habinteg.
The figures are published as the government marks three years since announcing it would introduce regulations requiring all new homes to include step-free access at entrance level, along with other essential accessibility features. However, a second consultation round, expected to finalise the changes, has not materialised, and the new standards remain unadopted.
The joint analysis from Habinteg and the Centre for Ageing Better estimates that just 112,000 new accessible and adaptable homes have been built in the past three years. This projection is based on an industry average, suggesting only one in four new builds meet this standard. Over the same period, more than 375,000 homes have been constructed without these features.
Millie Brown, deputy director for homes at the Centre for Ageing Better, said, “We welcome the government’s commitment to building 1.5 million new homes; however, it is paramount that they are built to be accessible and adaptable.” She continued, “The government must seize this opportunity to address the crisis of inaccessible housing and bridge the ever-widening gap between the number of Disabled people and accessible homes.
“The proportions of older and Disabled people among our population are growing significantly, and yet there are not enough provisions to support this change in our country’s demographics – we are falling abysmally short of meeting people’s needs.
“We know that the impact of raising minimum accessibility standards could have been life-changing to so many people had it been implemented over the past three years; from performing basic tasks like being able to shower without risking injury, to having the ability to enter the front door and move around easily. People living in homes which do not meet their accessibility needs cannot just wait for years and years, clinging to the hope that this change might happen at some point in the future; their need is desperate and urgent."
“Everyone deserves to live in a home that affords them safety and independence. Now is the time to make the change and raise the level of what we should expect from our housing.”
New polling for the Centre for Ageing Better highlights the scale of public concern. Two in three people (66%) believe they would struggle to carry out daily tasks or move around their home without significant adaptations if they developed a serious health issue or injury. Additionally, 77% support the idea that all new homes should be built to allow people to live independently as they age or if they become disabled.
The previous government’s consultation response had outlined the long-term benefits of raising accessibility standards, describing how the move would ‘future proof’ homes for coming generations and reduce the need for costly adaptations or relocations.
Christina McGill, director of social impact & external affairs at Habinteg Housing Association, said, “The Government's plans for housing are central to so much of what it wants to achieve. Accessible and adaptable homes in particular hold huge potential to reduce health and social care costs whilst supporting disabled and older people to work and maintain independence.” She added, “Yet twelve months into the new Government's term we've heard very little of its intentions with regard to the minimum standards of accessibility and adaptability.
"Meanwhile, homes are being built, and plans are being made for new developments which will not be accessible and adaptable and will therefore fail to deliver these critical outcomes."
“Far too many disabled and older people are making do in homes that limit their lives and independence. That's why Habinteg and the HoME coalition are asking the government to act now on accessible homes rules. With a rapidly ageing population and increasing rates of disability, the government needs to ensure the country's new homes will all be fit for the nation's needs both now and into the future.”
The Centre for Ageing Better has previously found that little progress has been made in improving home accessibility over the past decade. Despite the growing need, recent figures show the proportion of homes with key features has remained static. In the absence of updated regulations, the unmet need for accessible housing has widened to include more than 12 million people, an increase of over 2 million in just ten years.
Raising the default building standard to M4(2), which includes features such as wider doorways, level access, and adaptable layouts, could address a large proportion of the current shortfall, according to the coalition.
The Housing Made for Everyone (HoME) coalition, co-chaired by Habinteg and the Centre for Ageing Better, is urging the government to use the Planning and Infrastructure Bill as the vehicle to enact the long-delayed regulatory update.
Accessible housing, the organisations argue, brings both social and economic benefits. These include:
Enabling greater independence and reducing reliance on care services
Lower NHS costs by reducing falls and home-related injuries
Improved mental health and wellbeing for Disabled people
Avoiding expensive retrofits by including features in the original design
