Government must act now to prevent a growing housing crisis for older people
- The number of people aged 55 and over in England is expected to grow by five million over the next 25 years, reaching 23 million in 2050.
- New analysis finds a crisis of appropriate housing as the parts of the country set to see the largest proportion of older people have the largest percentage of non-decent homes.
- The lack of appropriate housing for older people has a huge impact on them and on wider services. Fixing unsafe and inappropriate housing could save the NHS and social care system £2bn a year.
- New Fabian Society report calls for the government to act now to ensure older people can access decent and suitable housing as the population ages.
Forward planning: A vision of ageing at home, released today by the Fabian Society and co-produced with the Centre for Ageing Better, is calling on the government to act now to prevent a crisis for older people unable to access and live in good quality homes.
With the number of people aged 55 and over in England growing by five million over the next quarter century, there will be a change in what people expect and need from their home. Most older people live and want to remain in mainstream housing that they own.
The report calls for urgent action to ensure more homes are decent and accessible for an ageing society. Around 1.9m owner-occupiers aged 55 and over live in a home that fails the existing Decent Homes Standard. Just 8 per cent of older owner-occupied homes have basic accessibility features. Older homeowners are much more likely to live in poor quality and inaccessible housing than their younger counterparts – despite the health implications of doing so potentially being much more serious.
In some parts of the country, this crisis is deeper. The local authorities predicted to have the largest proportion of people aged 65 and over currently have the largest proportion of non-decent homes. Without action, there is a risk that the 1.5m new homes target will result in hundreds of thousands of unsuitable new builds for an ageing society.
With the government expected to release a housing strategy in the coming months, the report calls for government to tackle the growing crisis in mainstream housing for older people. This means both increasing the number of new homes that are accessible, and supporting existing homeowners to make their property safe and suitable for older age.
To deliver of this, the report recommends:
- All new homes should meet the ‘accessible and adaptable’ standard. Adopting this standard was proposed by the previous Conservative government in July 2022 , but has not been implemented.
- Establish a national target for wheelchair accessible properties, in partnership with the housing sector – and require every local plan to adopt a percentage of all new homes to be wheelchair accessible.
- Improve access to high-quality and trusted advice for housing repairs, improvements and adaptations. Every older owner-occupier should be able to access independent information and advice.
The report outlines key benefits for the country and people from acting now, and adopting these recommendations:
- Improved health: Decent and accessible homes will save lives, improve health and wellbeing, and reduce pressure on hospitals and A&E. Estimates suggest improving owner-occupied homes could save the NHS £780 million per year.
- Keep people living independently in their own home for longer: People living in non-decent or inaccessible housing are more likely to need care and require it for longer. Fixing the unsafe homes of older people could save £1.1bn per year in formal care costs, and£3.5bn per year in unpaid care.
- Improve living standards of older people: With 1.9m pensioner owner-occupiers living in poverty, the cost of living matters. Poor quality housing increases energy bills, especially in the winter. Improving the energy efficiency of badly insulated properties could cut energy bills by £230 a year.
Anna Dixon, MP for Shipley and chair of the APPG on Housing and Care for Older People, said:
“Too many older people live in substandard homes that lack accessibility features. This important report sets out practical proposals to ensure that as people live longer, new homes are built to be more accessible and adaptable.”
Ben Cooper, Head of the Fabian Housing Centre and author of the report, said:
“Three years ago, the previous government promised to improve the accessibility of homes for older people. They failed to deliver on it, leaving millions of older people stuck in unsuitable homes.
“This government can fix the problem, deliver 1.5m accessible and safe new homes, and improve existing properties. The housing strategy must set out how to ensure our country has the homes fit for the future.”
Millie Brown, Deputy Director for Homes at the Centre for Ageing Better, said:
“Without urgent action, we are sleepwalking into an escalating crisis given the current shortage of adequate homes for older people and our growing ageing population. It is an issue that needs addressing as a high priority in the government’s upcoming housing strategy. We need to have a plan in place for ageing well at home which is how nine in ten of us will spend our later lives.
“To do that, we need to be building suitable, adaptable and accessible mainstream housing as the cornerstone of the government’s housebuilding programme. But as newbuilds will only make up a small minority of the homes we’ll be living in for the foreseeable future, we also need to ensure the support is there for people to improve the quality and accessibility of their existing homes.”
ENDS
Notes
- Contact: Matt Patterson, Media Consultant, Fabian Society matt.patterson@fabians.org.uk.
- Forward Planning: A vision of ageing at home is published by the Fabian Society. It was edited by Iggy Wood. The report was co-produced with Centre for Ageing Better.
- The Decent Homes Standard set out how a home must be free from serious health and safety hazards, be in a reasonable state of repair, have reasonably modern facilities and services such as kitchens and bathrooms, and provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort. Owner-occupier homes are not required to meet the Decent Homes Standard.
- The Fabian Society is Britain’s oldest political think tank. Founded in 1884, the society is at the forefront of developing political ideas and public policy on the left. The society is alone among think tanks in being a democratically constituted membership organisation, with around 6,500 members. It is constitutionally affiliated to the Labour party.
- The Centre for Ageing Better is a charity tackling inequalities in ageing. We are working to make our workplaces, homes and communities inclusive of older people, as well as building an Age-friendly Movement so that society sees ageing in a more positive and realistic way. Get it right and more of us can experience good health, financial security and be treated fairly and with respect as we grow older.