Richard Blakeway, housing ombudsman for England, has recently made public some alarming trends relating to the conditions of houses in the country. In a recent report, he noted that state of good repair has become the leading source of complaints received in his office. They currently represent a stunning 45% of the total Rules workload. Beyond this stunning statistic lies a major problem. Complaints about unsafe or unhealthy living conditions have jumped by 474% from the 2019/20 fiscal year.
The report is produced from an in-depth analysis of hundreds of cases and more than 3,000 responses to a public call for evidence. It illustrates a rising tide of anger among renters. Blakeway cautioned that “simmering anger at poor housing conditions” could escalate into broader social tensions if not addressed promptly.
These results demonstrate that landlords often withhold repair resources. Other policies indicate that repairs will be done only when funding or other resources can be found. This practice not only is deeply problematic and burdens landlords with new responsibilities, it tramples on the rights of tenants in many ways. Blakeway emphasized the need for a “transformative overhaul” of the sector, advocating for a national tenant body to enhance residents’ rights and bolster landlord accountability.
As December 2020 saw the tragic death of Awaab Ishak show us, unsafe housing can have deadly consequences. Ishak’s mother turned to law after he died of health complications from long-term exposure to mould in their family social housing apartment. This tragic disaster has fundamentally shaped the public perception on the safety of our country’s housing. The Grenfell Tower fire was a major influence in contextualizing this awareness.
According to official statistical data, nearly half (45%) of social homes in England were built before 1964. More than half of all social homes (54%) have damp and mould. It jumped from 4% in 2019 to 7% in 2023. Yet even with social landlords projected to spend a record £9 billion on repairs and maintenance over the 2023/24 fiscal year, complaints continue to roll in.
Blakeway stressed that it was his office that demanded £3.4 million in remuneration for substandard living and conditions suffered throughout 2024/25. It’s clear from this action that there is a desperate need for systemic change. He remarked on the disconnect between current housing quality standards and the experiences of tenants, stating, “The baseline set for the quality of social housing is completely detached from the reality of consumer experience elsewhere. It’s completely inadequate in the 21st century.”
Regrettably, it has taken tragic incidents to spur the federal government to act on these matters, but thankfully new regulations will soon be implemented. Social landlords will be expected to undertake emergency repairs — such as those that alleviate damp and mould — within a day. Even more, they’ll have until 2027 to remediate other hazards like asbestos and contaminated water supplies.
One of the issues Blakeway said she’s worried about are the long-term effects of these failures. “Without change we effectively risk the managed decline of one of the largest provisions of social housing in Europe,” he stated. He noted, too, that home replacement for aging homes will take more than 60 years with current production. This new report underscores just how critical it is to act now.
He raised questions regarding aspirations for improvement: “Where is our aspiration? Landlord systems just haven’t modernised to move from a reactive approach to maintenance to a predictive approach, and that often creates long delays to repairs.”
As residents have expressed their anger in many other public outlets. Throughout her research, Blakeway found a common theme of tenants experiencing a sense of “invisibility” with their concerns dismissed and not treated seriously. He stated, “It is leading to a really serious fracturing of trust, which in some cases is irreparable.”
A spokesman for the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government accepted the gravity of the state of affairs. In turn, they are acting with urgency and alarm in response to these findings. “Everyone deserves to live in a safe, secure home and despite the dire situation we have inherited, we are taking decisive action to make this a reality,” they stated.