Rabbit-hutch Britain: UK sets record for smallest properties in Europe

[Tony Gosling]

Rabbit-hutch Britain: Growing health concerns as 
UK sets record for smallest properties in Europe

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/rabbithutch-britain-growing-health-concerns-as-uk-sets-record-for-smallest-properties-in-europe-9544450.html

Millions living in overcrowded housing because of failure to build new homes

<http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/http://www.independent.co.uk/biography/jonathan-brown>JONATHAN 
BROWN
Author Biography
 Wednesday 18 June 2014

Britain is in the grip of an invisible housing 
squeeze with millions of people living in homes 
that are too small for them, according to new 
research which reveals that more than half of all 
dwellings are failing to meet minimum modern standards on size.

The poorest households are being hit hardest, 
with estimates suggesting that four-fifths of 
those affected by the Coalition’s “bedroom tax” 
are already forced to contend with a shortage of 
space, the Cambridge University study found.

The findings will put pressure on the Government, 
which announced it was to develop a national 
space standard – although this will only be 
enforced where it does not impinge on 
development. Critics argue that the UK already 
has the smallest properties in Europe following 
the end of national guidelines in 1980. But 
soaring land and property prices and a shortage 
of new homes are fuelling overcrowding, which 
causes health problems including depression, insomnia and asthma.

The authors of the study – based on an analysis 
of 16,000 homes in England – said the findings 
showed the bedroom tax was “fundamentally 
flawed”. The study argues that, when analysed by 
floor space instead of the number of rooms, 55 
per cent of all homes fail to meet enhanced 
minimum guidelines laid down by the London 
Housing Design Guide. This was introduced by the 
London Authority in 2011 to improve the quality 
of accommodation in the capital, but has come to 
be seen as the industry-wide standard.

When analysed by number of current occupants, one 
home in five is too small. And the problem of too 
many undersized properties would be much more 
serious if it were not for low occupation rates 
caused by increased numbers of single-person households.

Worst affected were flats and terraced houses 
with children, whilst the study suggested that 79 
per cent of homes were either near or below acceptable size.

The average floor space for a dwelling in the UK 
as a whole is currently 85 sq metres, whilst 
new-builds average only 76 sq metres – putting 
Britain at the bottom of a league table of 15 
countries including Ireland, Portugal and Italy.

The paper, in the journal Building Research & 
Information, said that the extent of the problem 
was not fully understood. Up to a third of 
householders were said to be unhappy with where 
they lived. “The majority of homes in the UK are 
not fully occupied and yet residents are 
dissatisfied with the amount of space, with lack 
of storage space, insufficient space for 
furniture and lack of space in which to socialise 
often cited as particular problems,” said the 
authors Malcolm Morgan and Heather Cruickshank.

Mr Morgan, who led the research, said many people 
found themselves in what was described as a 
three-bedroom property but which only had the 
floor space of a two-bedroom place under the 
London standards. Box rooms categorised as 
bedrooms were only of use as storage spaces or studies.

The bedroom tax looks at the number of bedrooms, 
and not at the total available space per person. 
But the study found that “only 19 per cent of 
households losing housing benefit (under the 
bedroom tax) could be considered to have more space than they needed.”

The president of the Royal Institute of British 
Architects Stephen Hodder said the average new 
one-bedroom property measuring just 46 sq metres 
was the same size as a London Underground 
carriage. “This is depriving households of the 
space they need to live comfortably and cohesively,” he said.

“Space for children to do their homework, private 
areas for rest or relaxation and even space to 
store food and the vacuum are all major concerns 
in British homes. With a failing housing market, 
we need to empower our local authorities to 
borrow money and build quality homes,” he added.

But the Home Builders Federation said market 
forces, most particularly the price of land, 
dictated the cost and size of new homes. Steve 
Turner, a spokesman, said: “House builders have 
to provide a choice. There are plenty of large 
homes available on the market and there are 
smaller ones to cater for people on a smaller 
budget. If you say all homes have to be a certain 
size it will exclude a lot of people.”

Rachel Fisher, head of policy at the National 
Housing Federation, said: “This is evidence that 
the bedroom tax is not working. It is not making 
better use of social housing stock because the 
imbalance between the distribution of households 
and homes means that in many parts of the country 
perfectly usable homes are lying empty.”

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesman 
said: “The fact is that before our reforms 
taxpayers were funding 820,000 spare bedrooms in 
working age households in the social rented 
sector. The removal of the spare-room subsidy is 
a fair reform so the taxpayer no longer pays for 
people’s spare bedrooms, while over 300,000 
people continue to live in overcrowded homes and 
1.7 million sit on council waiting lists.”

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