Habinteg release new report warning of 'accessible homes crisis'.

A new report from Habinteg is warning of an 'accessible housing crisis.

The report, published today, analyses English local plans which set policies for what types of homes are to be built by 2030 and where.

There are 13.9 million disabled people in the UK yet just 7% of English homes currently provide even the most basic accessibility features. Unless new homes are suitable, older and disabled people will be excluded from aspects of daily life, placing increasing demand on public services.

Habinteg’s Chief Executive, Sheron Carter said of the findings:

“We would encourage national government to take a more strategic approach to accessible homes delivery. The optional approach is not only putting older and disabled people’s health and independence at risk but creating costly housing problems for the future.

While the government has stated their ambition for getting more disabled people into work, our research shows that this will fail unless the housing crisis for disabled people is urgently tackled. We strongly urge the government to raise the mandatory baseline standard for accessible homes.”