Scottish Government Equality Outcomes: Disability Evidence Review

7 Housing

7.1 The evidence in this section covers the evidence on tenure, house condition, accessibility, and homelessness. It closes with a look at welfare reform.

Tenure

7.2 The Scottish Household Survey (2010)^[45] found that disabled adults were more likely than non-disabled adults to live in the social rented sector, and less likely to own their own homes or rent privately. Fifty-nine percent of adults with a long-term illness or a disability lived in owner occupied housing, 35% in social rented accommodation, and 8% in the private rented sector. The corresponding figures for adults with no long-term illness or disability were 71%, 15% and 14% respectively.

House condition

7.3 In 2010, the Scottish Household Survey showed little difference in house condition for households where a member had a long term illness or disability, compared to households where no-one had a long term illness or disability. This was true for variables including Below Tolerable Standard, energy efficiency, presence of damp, condensation or mould, or critical disrepair.

7.4 Households where a member experienced a long term illness or disability were, however, more likely to also be fuel poor (33% compared to 23%).

Accessibility

7.5 In terms of accessibility, the Life Opportunities Survey^[46] asked participants about any barriers they faced getting into rooms in their own homes. It found that disabled people were more likely than other adults to have difficulty getting into their bedroom and their toilet/bathroom (see Table 9).

Table 9: Rooms in own home adults had difficulty getting into by impairment status, 2009/11 (Adults aged 16 and over who had difficulty getting into any room in own home) (Source: Life Opportunities Survey, Wave One results, 2011)

NOTE:

1. Respondents were asked to select all rooms that they had difficulty accessing from the list of options provided.

7.6 The Life Opportunities Survey respondents listed the barriers they faced as: impairments, disabilities and stairs with no lift or ramp (see Table 10).

Table 10: Barriers to accessing rooms within the home by impairment status, 2009/11 (Adults aged 16 and over who experienced difficulty getting into any room in own home) (Source: Life Opportunities Survey, Wave One results, 2011)

NOTE:

1. Respondents were asked to select all barriers that applied to them from the list of options provided. All respondents regardless of impairment status could select these response options.

7.7 The Life Opportunities Survey further reports that the stock of wheelchair adapted housing has increased from 2,300 units in 1996 to 6,300 in 2010.

Homelessness

7.8 The EHRC Review of Research^[47] (2009) suggests that, in Scotland, people who have experienced homelessness are more likely to be disabled or have a long term illness. Data on the number of disabled people making a homeless application to a local authority, and assessed as being priority need as a result of physical or learning disability, show applications increased in the period between 1992-93 and 2001-02, when the number peaked at 1,406. Figures from 2002 onwards show that the number of applications has remained relatively constant since then. The Review cites Scottish Household Survey (2006) data on people who have ever experienced homelessness: it shows that 6.5% reported having a disability or long-term illness, compared with 3.3% of those who did not.

Welfare reform

7.9 Regarding the potential impact of welfare reform on housing for disabled people, Inclusion Scotland and Capability Scotland^[48] commented (in 2011) on section 68 of the Welfare Reform Bill. This introduces a reduction in housing benefit for those people of working age, who are under-occupying accommodation in the social rented sector. The provision would mean that those found to be under-occupying social rented accommodation would need to seek smaller accommodation from their current provider, or find accommodation in the private sector. They anticipate that this reform is likely to have a disproportionate impact on disabled people in Scotland because disabled people are over represented amongst social sector tenants in Scotland (citing the Scottish House Condition Survey), and because disabled people may be less able to avoid sanctions under this provision because of the barriers to finding suitable (accessible and/or adapted) accommodation.