The Centre provides a focus within the Law School's Legal Research Institute for research and development associated with housing conditions and health, and housing standards. Members of the Centre have a reputation for high quality research into housing standards and their application. Current interests include - unintentional home injuries; carbon monoxide poisoning in dwellings; indoor air quality in dwellings; residential energy precariousness; the legal environment of housing in different countries; crowding, density and health; and the cost to society of poor housing.

The Centre specialises in policy relevant research and development, and aims to ensure the outcomes of any work are practical and effective. It is particularly interested in collaborative, inter-disciplinary work.

• Large Analysis and Review of European housing and health Status (LARES) - This project was carried out during 2002 and 2003 and involved surveys of housing conditions and the self-report health status of residents in eight cities in eight countries in Europe. The data collected was analysed by a group of international experts and gives new evidence and insights into links between housing conditions and the health of residents. Members of the Centre were involved in the study and David Ormandy, Head of the Centre, edited the book, Housing and Health in Europe: the WHO LARES project, published by Routledge in April 2009. This gives an explanation of the project and provides findings from analyses of the data collected on such subjects as domestic accidents, energy and cold homes, damp and mould. (LARES were Roman guardian spirits of the house and fields.)
  
  
  
  More details at -
  • Housing and Health in Europe 

• Decent Homes - Members of the Centre acted as consultants to CRESR at Sheffield Hallam University on a study into the health impact of the Decent Homes programme. CRESR used the principles of the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (developed by the Centre) to esimate the health gains from housing improvement work undertaken by Sheffield Homes Ltd as part of their Decent Homes programme A similar project was undertaken in Ealing, London. The Sheffield report is available here -
  • Decent Homes: Better Health.
• Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) - Members of the Centre were responsible for the development of the original version of the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS), Version 1 of which was first published in July 2000 by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (now the DCLG). Members of the Centre continued to be involved in the development of the HHSRS, including preparation of Worked Examples to illustrate the application of the HHSRS, and working with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine on refining and updating the statitiscal evidence informing the HHSRS (2003). They then updated and revised the Guidance to produce Version 2 to coincide with the consideration of the Housing Bill by Parliament in 2004. Subsequently, after final revisions by members of the Centre, the Guidance became the Operating Guidance issued under s9 of the Housing Act 2004 to provide the technical support when the HHSRS was introduced by Regulations on 6th April 2006 as the prescribed method for assessing housing conditions to determine whether enforcement action under Part 1 of the 2004 may be appropriate. They were also responsible for the preparation of non-technical Guidance on the HHSRS for landlords and others.
  • Health Hazards in the Housing Environment; A risk assessment methodology
  • Housing Health and Safety Rating System: Report on Development of Version 1 (2000)
  • Housing Health and Safety Rating System: Report on Development of Version 2 (2004)
    
  • Other Housing Health & Safety Rating System Documents
  • Operating Guidance
  • Guidance for Landlords and other Propety Related Professionals
  • Housing Health and Safety Rating System (England) Regulations 2005
• Houses in Multiple Occupation - Preparation of an Approved Code of Practice for Management Standards in Multi-Occupied Buildings (also for the ODPM).
• World Health Organization - Involvement in the WHO European Centre for Environment and Health (Bonn Office). This included work on -
  • European Task Force on Housing and Health
  • Large Analysis and Review of European housing and health Status (LARES)
  • Environmental Health Indicators

Other work has included -

• Housing Disrepair Legal Obligations: Good Practice Guide (2002)
• Review of the Controls on Minimum Standard for the Existing Housing Stock (1998);
• The Use of Statutory Nuisance Powers by Individuals to Remedy Housing Problems: Actions against Local Authorities and Housing Associations (1996);
• Monitoring Housing Renovations Standards (1994);
• Monitoring the New Housing Fitness Standard (1993);
• Buildings and Safety Review: Implications for the Housing Fitness Standard (1993);
• Buildings and Security Review: Implications for the Housing Fitness Standard (1993);
• Buildings and Health Review: Implications for the Housing Fitness Standard (1993).

The 5th Warwick Healthy Housing Conference was held on 17th - 19th March 2008. Copies of the papers will be made available on this web-site soon.

The Centre organised an international conference, Healthy Housing: promoting good health, held on 19th - 21st March 2003 at Warwick University.
Copies of the PowerPoint and Word Documents

This conference was the fourth in a series -

• Unhealthy Housing: A diagnosis (1986)
• Unhealthy Housing: Prevention and remedies (1987)
• Unhealthy Housing: The Public Health response (1991)

Copies of papers given at these conferences are available from the Centre.

The Centre can be contacted at -

David Ormandy, principal research fellow - +44 (0) 24 7652 4936
david.ormandy@warwick.ac.uk

Links

World Health Organization European Centre for Environment and Health
Housing and Health 

Wellington School of Medicine and Health, New Zealand -
Housing and Health Research Programme

National Center for Healthy Housing, USA -

NCHH