This FOI request is seeking more specific data in relation to this MHCLG collection and therefore definitions should be read within the context of the guidance given to councils when completing this return.

A home is non decent if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
• Does not meet the current statutory minimum standard for housing due to having one or more serious ‘category 1 hazards’ under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS),
• Is not in a reasonable state of repair,
• Does not have reasonably modern facilities and services, and/or
• Does not provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.
One example category 1 hazard is excess cold, where sub-optimal indoor temperatures are deemed a threat to occupant’s health.

For the following questions, please provide data that was correct as of 31 March 2021. If this is not possible however please provide the most recent available data and specify the date of extraction (ie what date the data is correct as of). I would like to know:
Wokingham Borough Councils housing stock is made up mostly of traditionally constructed two and single storey housing built since World War 2. We have no high rise properties. Some year ago, predating our existing databases considerable sums were spent on cavity wall insulation, thermal rendering and loft insulation. Virtually all properties have double glazed windows and we are in the third year of replacing those double glazed windows that are no longer effective. The bulk of our stock has gas fired central heating. In additional our last decent homes surveys was done some years ago and any houses that would have failed due to thermal comfort issues received appropriate work. Therefore, we do not have any decent home failures due to thermal comfort. However, to be clear, we do have boilers that fail and need to be replaced and therefore for a few days there is no programmable heating, but during that time temporary heating is supplied. Finally, we have just started a new decent homes survey programme and towards the end of next year we will receive new data.

1. How many council-owned dwellings failed the decent home criteria by virtue of suffering from a category 1 hazard of ‘excess cold’? Please only include Class 1 hazard dwellings, and not those that fail because they do not have a reasonable degree of thermal comfort.
None

2. Of the council-owned dwellings with a class 1 excess cold hazard, how many are occupied?
None

3. Of the council-owned homes with a class 1 excess cold hazard which are occupied, how many have not had work to address the cold hazard because the tenant refused to allow the work to be carried out?
None

For the next question, I would like your most up to date snapshot. Please tell me:
4. How many council-owned dwellings fail the decent homes standard by virtue of
a) category 1 excess cold: None
b) not having a reasonable degree of thermal comfort:None
Please provide figures for a) and b) separately and specify how many any dwellings fall into both categories. Please tell me what date the data provided was extracted.

Please provide answers to the next questions for the last five full financial years (2016/17, 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21), broken down by year:
5. In the last five financial years, how much has the council spent to remove class 1 excess cold hazards from council owned dwellings?
None – See notes above

6. In the last five financial years, how much has the council spent to make council-owned dwellings ‘without a reasonable degree of thermal comfort’ decent? Please only include the money spent on improving the thermal comfort - for instance if a home was non-decent because it both had an unreasonable degree of thermal comfort and was not in a reasonable state of repair, please count only the money spent improving the thermal comfort.
None see notes

7. In the last five financial years, how much has the council spent to prevent dwellings becoming non decent due to non-reasonable thermal comfort or due to having an excess cold category 1 hazard?
None see notes

8. In the last five financial years how much has the council paid out in grants to
a) private renters
b) owner-occupiers to make improvements to a dwelling’s thermal comfort
Please break this data down by year, and provide separate data for renters and owner occupiers.
Unable to report on this data