Wates Launches ‘Healthy Homes’ Division

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23 April 2024

Building and property maintenance company Wates has launched a new “healthy homes” service to help social housing landlords to reduce disrepair, damp and mould.

The Regulator of Social Housing (RHS) estimates that damp and mould affects 160,000 social housing properties in England. A report from the Building Research Establishment shows that damp in England’s home causes illnesses which equate to a £38 million annual bill for the NHS. In 2019, the presence of damp and mould in England’s housing stock was estimated to be associated with approximately 5,000 cases of asthma and 8,500 lower respiratory infections among children and adults.

The Awaab’s Law consultation intends to introduce strict time limits for social housing providers to address dangerous hazards such as damp and mould. The consultation is named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died from a respiratory condition in 2020 due to prolonged exposure to mould in his home in Rochdale. 

Wates’ “healthy homes” service will be offered as a bespoke programme of work, including measures to source solutions to improve ventilation, such as thermoboards to improve insulation, air bricks that monitor humidity, and air monitoring systems to help improve air quality.

David Morgan, Executive Managing Director of Wates Property Services, said: “Issues of disrepair, and damp and mould are a growing challenge for social landlords, which are compounded by equally pressing priorities of energy efficiency retrofit, routine maintenance and fire safety. Treating these with equal importance is vital, but can create budgetary pressures. The aim of our Healthy Homes service is to work with customers to address these challenges alongside our complementary services, ensuring that we are improving the lives of residents at every available opportunity while maximising value for money for landlords.

“Good communication and resident engagement will sit at the heart of our new Healthy Homes service, underpinned by the experience and care of our growing team of resident liaison officers. By their nature, issues of disrepair, damp or mould bring worry and distress to residents, many of whom are in vulnerable circumstances. Our Healthy Homes service is designed to help our customers combat these challenges so that residents can lead happier and healthier lives.”

Picture: a photograph of a person wearing a Wates-branded protective hard hat and a hi-vis waistcoat, standing at the back of a Wates-branded van. Image Credit: Wates

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 23 April 2024

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