Making sure your home meets the Decent Homes Standard

The Decent Homes Standard, a government scheme that sets a clear minimum standard for social housing across England and Northern Ireland.

To meet this standard, every home managed by us must:

1. be safe and free from serious health or safety hazards
2. be in a reasonable state of repair
3. have modern and well laid out facilities
4. provide a reasonable level of warmth and comfort.

1. Safe and hazard free homes

Homes must be free of serious safety risks, known as Category 1 hazards, such as:

• lead drinking water pipes
• excessive cold due to no heating.

These are assessed using the  Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) which checks for risks  like damp, mould, trip hazards and more.

If you are worried about any safety issues in your home, please contact the customer access team on  0800 5870211 or email information@jrht.org.uk

2. Reasonable state of repair

To meet this part of the standard, your home must have:

• a kitchen no more than 30 years old and in good condition
• a bathroom no more than 40 years old and in good condition
• central heating pipes and radiators no more than 40 years old.

A home may not meet the standard if two or more of these are old and in poor condition. We check these regularly through our planned programme of works.

3. Modern facilities

A home may not meet this part of the standard if it lacks three or more of the following:

• a kitchen less than 20 years old
• a kitchen with a good layout and enough space
• a bathroom less than 30 years old
• a toilet and bathroom that is appropriately located e.g. not in a bedroom
• good insulation against noise from outside the home
• for flats: clean, safe and well-laid out communal areas.

We look at how well kitchens and bathrooms are functioning – for example, if three or more parts of the kitchen (like the sink, hot water, or cupboards) need major repairs, it might fail this part of the standard.

4. Warm and comfortable

All homes should provide a reasonable level of warmth. This includes working central heating systems and proper insulation.

As well as meeting the Decent Homes Standard, all homes managed by JRHT must also be fit for habitation. This means they must be safe, healthy and free from anything which could cause serious harm.

If you do not feel your home is ‘fit for habitation’ then you should report this immediately to the Customer Access team on  0800 5870211 or email information@jrht.org.uk.

If you are a secure tenant and you have made certain improvements to your home since 1 April 1994, you might be able to claim compensation when your tenancy ends.

You can apply 28 days before, or 14 days after, your tenancy ends. 

People eligible to apply are:

• the tenant that made the improvement 
• a joint tenant who took over the tenancy
• a spouse, partner or relative who inherited the tenancy.

What improvements are included? 

Each type of qualifying improvement has an expected number of years it will add value to your home – this is called its "notional lifespan." If you move out before that time is up, you may be able to claim compensation based on how much of the improvement’s value is left. The table below shows the typical lifespans for different improvements.

You can claim for: 

• the cost of materials (but not appliances such as a cooker or a fridge) 
• labour costs (but not DIY) .

The maximum you can claim is £3,000 per improvement, and the minimum is £50. How much you receive depends on how old and worn the improvement is when you apply.