Written evidence submitted by Migrant Help [DPH 025]

DLUHC: Call for Evidence: Disabled people in the housing sector

Migrant Help exist to protect people affected by displacement and exploitation, helping them thrive as individuals and recover from their trauma. We support those most in need and least likely to find support elsewhere, whilst aiming to bridge community gaps and bring services and support together.

We support clients through the asylum process, as refugees and survivors of trafficking as they settle into their new communities. We ask that asylum seekers, refugees, and survivors of trafficking with confirmed accessibility issues have the same rights and recourse as all residents in England when it comes to accessible and adaptable housing.

What role should the Government, Local Authorities and developers have for ensuring the delivery of suitable housing for disabled people?

• The Government, Local Authorities, developers (private and social) and other stakeholders (relevant support charities and/or organisations), are key to ensuring the delivery of suitable housing for people with accessibility and disability needs. Stakeholders, who should collaborate with the Government ensuring the required legislation is in place specifying properties built are to the minimum build standards of M4(2), or even introducing the higher standard of M4(3) as standard.
  Collaboration which should continually review the requirements of people with accessibility and disability needs enabling the housing sector to be proactive.
• Local Authorities should ensure there is no undue influence from developers to reduce the number of social houses proposed on submitted plans to what is actually provided for abled and disabled people. All stakeholders need to work in effective partnership ensuring suitable accommodation is available for all.
• All should work to ensure vulnerable populations including those with refugee status are aware of their rights related to accessible and adaptable housing. This can be done through joint campaigns in partnership with Local Authorities and developers but should also be provided during the move on period.

What can the Government do to ensure disabled residents across England have access to accessible and adaptable housing?

• Mandate the minimum number accessible homes that should be built as part of new housing developments or builds ensuring these properties are built to a minimum of M4(2), increasing the number of properties being built to the higher standard of M4(3). In 2020 13.9 million people were registered as disabled, with 7% of homes in England recorded as being accessible.[1]
• Facilitate more open working and better sharing of information between government, local and/or district/county councils and support services such as medical practitioners to ease the burden of residents requesting and collating the required medical evidence to support requests for adapted or accessible accommodation. Information gathering; which is time consuming and reliant on medical appointments, referrals for assessments prior to a request being accepted and considered by the relevant bodies.
• Introduce a national scheme collaborating with private landlords who are willing to adapt their rental properties which are currently undergoing refurbishment for tenants with accessibility and/or disability issues. This would enable eligibility, faster assessments, and a faster decision to be provided for Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) applications. The expectation appears to be that adaptations are made to existing properties instead of increasing the number and availability of purpose-built accessible properties. Better promotion of the DFG among private landlords, the fact that the tenant is required to remain in situ for a minimum of 5years may be an additional motivating factor.

Case study: Jane has a bone degenerative condition and is cared for by a parent. Jane is a teenager and registered disabled. Her parent received notice, to leave their existing accommodation. The parent/carer identified a potential property to move to which was undergoing renovations. The landlord of the new property was willing to build an annex which would accommodate a separate bedroom and wet room to meet Jane’s current and future needs. The landlord contacted the local authority and was informed of the DFA. Jane would need to be assessed in her existing property, the assessment submitted with the plan of potential works, where a decision could take up to 6months. The time limit to receive a decision was too long for the landlord, who chose to continue with the accessibility requirements for Jane and their parent, providing accommodation that would meet their current and future needs, preventing them from becoming homeless.

How can the Government ensure it provides sufficient provisions to support disabled residents who do not live in new build homes? What can the Government do to support disabled tenants in the private rented sector?

• Establish better partnerships, information sharing in terms of proposed and/or approved housing developments scheduled. Facilitate effective collaborative working across all key stakeholders including private landlords to achieve a more proactive approach to residents living across England with accessibility and/or disability issues. Enable the completion of light renovations/remedial works more quickly, better supporting residents while waiting for accessible and/or adapted accommodation to be provided which better meets their needs.
• Identify and enable collaboration with providers such as Branch Properties,1 who specialise in finding and adapting rental properties to the needs of identified tenants.
• Review the eligibility, application and decision-making process for the DFG which can be up to 6months. Time which may be too long for private landlords to be more supportive of providing adaptive properties. Provide better promotion of the DFG and the self-assessment portal, so stakeholders are aware of the scheme and eligibility criteria.
• Review the level of the funding cap per project. The likelihood is that additional construction work will be required adapting existing properties compared to new builds depending on the specific needs of the individual. The DFG is available for projects up to £30,000 in England, which may not cover the costs of internal adaptations and/or the addition of a wet room or internal lift to continue using existing accommodation facilities as part of a family.[2]

• Enable concurrent DFG applications to be made for larger projects or renovations to be completed.

September 2023

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