The New Decent Homes Standard (DHS) has landed rather more softly across the affordable housing sector than had been anticipated. Whilst it will undoubtedly mean that Registered Providers (RPs) will still need to find the money for additional investment to their existing homes, the longer implementation period has been welcomed by many, if not most, across the sector. 

Described as “proportionate and pragmatic” by the National Housing Federation (NHF), the NHF believe that the way the Government has decided to stretch the deadline for compliance until 2035 means that “it will allow housing associations to prioritise urgent work needed to keep residents safe in their homes as well as balancing broader maintenance and improvement works with continued investment in building much needed new social homes.” 

20 years on since the first Decent Homes Standards were produced, the standards look to synthesise several different legal and regulatory requirements across the five key criterion, most notably bringing in the requirements from Awaab’s Law of 2023. 

A – A home must be free of the most dangerous hazards 

B – A home must be in a reasonable state of repair 

C – A home must provide core facilities and services 

D – A home must provide thermal comfort 

E – A home should be free of damp and mould 

 

Criterion A: A home must be free of the most dangerous hazards 

• If one Category 1 hazard is found, under a HHSRS assessment, then the home will fail to meet the DHS. 

With 29 health and safety hazards across the four bands of hazards, it is bands A-C which focus on Category 1 hazards. These important hazards include hygrothermal (damp, mould and temperature), pollutants (asbestos, carbon monoxide, lead and gas) plus psychological requirements (noise, overcrowding and security) and hygiene and sanitation (water supply, drainage, domestic and food hygiene).  

 

Criterion B: A home must be in a reasonable state of repair 

• If one key building component is not in a reasonable state of repair or if two or more other components are not in a reasonable state of repair, then the home will fail the DHS test. 

Key components are those that are fundamental to the integrity of the home (roof, walls, windows, doors, kitchens, bathrooms), whereas other components have a less immediate impact but form part of disrepair. 

 

Criterion C: A home must provide core facilities and services 

To meet DHS standards, all apartments must have three of the following four as a minimum:  

• A kitchen with adequate space and layout 

• An appropriately located bathroom and WC 

• Adequate external noise insulation 

• Adequate size and layout of common entrance areas in blocks of flats 

To meet DHS standards, all houses must have two of the following three as a minimum:  

• A kitchen with adequate space and layout 

• An appropriately located bathroom and WC 

• Adequate external noise insulation 

The age of the kitchen and bathrooms is no longer a deciding factor but child-resistant window restrictors, which can be overridden, are now required to address the risk of falls. 

 

Criterion D: A home must provide thermal comfort 

Going forward, the primary heating system in any home must have a distribution system sufficient to provide heat to the whole home that Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) is being introduced. 

The MEES requirement is slightly different for private and social rented sectors but by 1 April 2030, social homes will need to meet a minimum standard on one of the following: fabric performance, smart readiness, or heating system metrics. Alternatively, they will need to have a valid exemption registered. Landlords will have the flexibility to choose which of the three metrics they will meet, and there will be a £10,000 cost cap. Homes meeting EPC Band C or better by 1 April 2030 will be considered compliant until their individual EPCs expire, when they will be reevaluated. 

 

Criterion E: A home should be free of damp and mould 

Looking back at the HHSRS in Criterion A and with the introduction of Awaab’s Law, any home with a damp and mould hazard assessed within bands A to H of the HHSRS would fail the DHS requirement. There is further guidance to follow from the Government on this, but the timescales, actions and requirements from Awaab’s Law will be the route to remedy under this criterion. 

Martin Arnold is a firm supporter of the new DHS standard, we believe that everyone is entitled to a safe, warm, dry and healthy home and that this is a fundamentally important piece of social infrastructure required for a functioning society and economy. 

We believe the stretched timeframes will give RPs the time they need to help budget for the rollout and delivery of the DHS; we think the synthesised approach by the Government, tying regulation and standards together, is sensible. 

We are working on several stock condition survey programmes and are actively supporting a variety of clients in damp and mould inspections. We are also helping clients understand and improve the thermal performance and efficiency of their existing homes. 

If you would like to discuss any of the above services or projects, please reach out to us through our website Building Surveying – Martin Arnold.