A recent report from the UCL Institute of Health Equity (UCL IHE) reveals that the lack of effective measures to address cold homes in Britain over the past decade has exacerbated existing inequalities. The study, a follow-up to the 2011 report on The Health Impacts of Cold Homes and Fuel Poverty, utilized data from the government’s English Housing Survey.
It highlights that a staggering 9.6 million households in the UK are currently residing in inadequately insulated homes (Energy Performance Certificate D or below) while struggling with incomes below the minimum threshold required for a decent standard of living, encompassing essential elements such as housing, heating, and basic necessities. This precarious situation places many households on the brink of crisis.
“That there are millions, in a rich country like ours, living in cold homes is a national disgrace,” the authors explain. “One third of all households in the U.K., 9.6 million, can’t afford a decent standard of living and are in poorly insulated homes.”
Feeling the freeze
Living in cold homes is really bad for health. It makes people more likely to get sick, both physically and mentally. This puts extra pressure on the already very busy NHS and also hurts the UK’s productivity.
We urgently need to do something about poverty, high fuel costs, and make sure that the homes of the poorest people are better insulated. It’s not just because the government should take care of people’s health, but also because it just makes sense for the economy and the environment.
Studies show that adults who spend a lot of time in cold homes are twice as likely to develop new mental health problems. And if someone already has mental health issues, the risk of them getting worse triples.
Kids are affected too. About one in four children living in cold homes are at risk of having various mental health problems like feeling anxious or sad. The cold, money troubles, feeling lonely – all these things together are making people’s mental health worse. We need to act fast to fix this.
“Whatever the outcome in children—health, education, or emotional well-being—cold and substandard homes are toxic risk factors,” the researchers explain. “Childhood is a time when the foundations of a person’s body are laid down, and that is what they are left with for the rest of their life.”
A financial burden
Cold homes are causing a huge financial burden on the UK, potentially costing the economy billions each year. This includes expenses for the NHS, mental health services, care, and the economic contributions lost when people get sick due to living in cold homes.
Researchers have crunched the numbers and suggest that a country-wide plan to properly insulate low-income homes in the UK (meeting a standard of EPC grade C and above) would be around £74.5 billion. Making landlords upgrade homes that leak heat to the right standard would help share this cost, and tax incentives would prevent tenants from facing higher rents.
This plan should be just one part of a strategy to tackle cold homes. It should also include better pay, financial aid for those with lower incomes to afford heating, and a national effort to build more affordable homes, reducing housing expenses and improving living conditions.
Investing in this plan is not just about money; it’s crucial for meeting legal commitments to cut carbon emissions and follow through on international promises to combat climate change.
“There’s no getting away from the enormity of the cold homes crisis and the impact it’s having on millions of lives,” the researchers conclude. “This hard-hitting report should spur all political parties into action as we head towards the general election—both the Conservatives and Labor have gone backwards over recent months on this critical issue.
“Given the sheer scale of the problem, we need to see transformative levels of investment and action, to stem the huge social and economic costs of cold homes and ensure our internationally agreed climate targets are met.”
