Time to put our house in order

Housing campaigner Kwajo Tweneboa on why disrepair and poor living conditions in the UK's rental and social housing sectors is an issue that can no longer be ignored

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DISREPAIR IN THE HOUSING SECTOR is a major issue which has been underestimated and ignored for decades, leaving occupants to live in D slum conditions. According to YouGov research released last year, 3.2 million (39 per cent) of private tenants say that they have been forced to live in dangerous or unhealthy homes for fear of eviction if they complain, while the government's English Housing Survey revealed that more than half a million social homes in England fail to meet basic health and safety standards. And things are getting worse. It's the most serious issue facing tenants in the UK and is a result of the current housing crisis, as well as the lack of significant government policy.

The concept of disrepair is defined as the poor state of a building, home or structure due to neglect. For most of my life it has been something I've experienced first-hand. My family and I have lived in social housing for many years. We started out in temporary accommodation, which was quite literally a badly converted car garage. Then, in 2018, we moved into a home not fit for human habitation. Filled with mice, cockroaches, damp and mould, its kitchen was very old, and it had a bathroom which couldn't be used.