Housing Digital share industry report around damp and mould
Recently, Housing Digital shared the below report around damp and mould, and we wanted to share it with you.
More than 1.3m households in England are living with damp, claims a new study that identifies poor ventilation as the single biggest predictor of the problem.
The report, The UK’s Invisible Air Quality Problem, published by ventilation specialist Airflow, reveals that homes with inadequate ventilation are 12 times more likely to have damp compared with those where air circulation meets recommended standards.
The study found that around 236,000 English dwellings (1%) are estimated to lack proper ventilation. Of these, nearly 60% showed signs of damp, compared with just 5% among adequately ventilated properties.
The findings mark a 25% rise in damp prevalence since 2015, reversing earlier improvements seen between 2013 and 2019.
The report highlights a significant health dimension to the issue: nearly half of all damp-affected households (47%) include someone with a long-term health condition – up from 33% in 2013.
In total, more than one million children and 324,000 people aged over 65 are currently living in homes with damp or mould, groups considered particularly vulnerable to respiratory and immune-related illnesses linked to poor indoor air quality.
Awaab’s Law and landlord responsibilities
The study comes as Awaab’s Law – named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died in 2020 following prolonged exposure to mould – comes into force next week. The legislation will require social landlords to address damp and mould within strict timeframes or face unlimited fines.
The new rules will place mounting pressure on landlords and developers to improve ventilation and maintenance standards across the UK’s ageing housing stock.
According to Airflow’s analysis, 12% of English homes (3m) have at least one external element in poor condition – such as roofs, walls or windows – rising to 14% in the private rented sector. Roughly 15% (453,000 ) of these homes also experience damp.
Damp was most common in properties with internal disrepair (19%), and more prevalent in homes with faulty heating systems (23%) than in those with only kitchen or bathroom defects (10%).
Humidity and poor airflow meant that bathrooms, bedrooms and living rooms were the most frequently affected areas, compared with kitchens or circulation spaces.
Alan Siggins, managing director of Airflow, said the findings show that damp should be treated as both a public health and social issue, not merely a maintenance concern.
“Poor ventilation and damp housing contribute to illness, higher maintenance costs and reduced well-being,” said Siggins. “Tackling this requires greater focus on ventilation standards and long-term investment in housing quality.”
He added that with “proper planning and commitment” to new regulatory standards, developers could both protect tenants’ health and create “a more sustainable and future-proof housing stock”.
To read this online, visit www.housingdigital.co.uk/damp-12x-more-likely-in-poorly-ventilated-homes-says-study/