Homes of children with health condition twice as likely to be cold in winter as Government considers cuts to insulation schemes

“Let’s be clear, cutting these net zero insulation schemes would leave homes colder and poorer. It’s vulnerable households, which can contain children with health conditions, who are facing a cold winter in damp homes. They’ll face the same thing next year and be in need of ongoing support unless the root problem is tackled by improving homes to make them permanently warmer.

“Insulation schemes have been cut over and over again in the past ten years resulting in millions of homes facing incredibly high bills and a taxpayer subsidy during the gas crisis. Doing so again, particularly in light of the backlash to the Winter Fuel Payment cuts, will clearly not help the homes and families that need it the most.”

According to the English Housing Survey [5], there are around 350,000 households that are home to a child with a health condition and are unable to keep warm. There are also around 120,000 households that have damp and are home to a child with a health condition.

The same statistics show that families with a child with a health condition that rent their homes are more likely to be unable to keep their homes warm, at around 40% (38%). Again, this is around double the proportion of rented homes that do not have a child with a health condition (19%).

In late October, Awaab’s Law was implemented just ahead of the 5-year anniversary of the death of two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died after being exposed to mould in the home his family rented [6].

“Condensation and damp in homes can lead to the development or worsening of asthma, respiratory infections, coughs, wheezing and shortness of breath” according to the House of Commons Library and “living in a cold home can worsen asthma and other respiratory illnesses and increase the risk of heart disease and cardiac events. It can also worsen musculoskeletal conditions such as arthritis” [7].

Mental health can also be impacted by cold or damp, with depression and anxiety more common among people living in these conditions. The Building Research Establishment found in 2023 that the NHS could save £540 million per year by tackling cold homes [8].

A 2023 report by Citizen’s Advice [9] found that 1.6 million children in privately rented homes were living in cold, damp or mouldy homes, far greater than the Government’s statistics suggest – with the Government using a very strict test that arguably omits many poor-quality homes. The report also found that homes with a poor Energy Performance Certificate were 73% more likely to experience damp and 89% more likely to experience excessive cold.