Mayor’s stats show failure to enforce his own accessible housing standards

London’s mayor has been failing for years to enforce his own London Plan, which requires 90 per cent of new homes to be accessible and adaptable, and another 10 per cent to be suitable for wheelchair-users.

Analysis by Disability News Service of the mayor’s own data shows that only three local authorities have ever reached the figure of 90 per cent in a year since 2015-16, in relation to homes given planning permission.

Accurate data on new home approvals only appears to have been collected so far to 2019-20.

Sadiq Khan’s London Plan requires 90 per cent of new-build homes to be accessible and adaptable (meeting what is known as the M4(2) standard) and the other 10 per cent to be suitable for wheelchair-users (either because they are immediately accessible or because they can be adapted for use by a wheelchair-user, and known as the M4(3) standard).

When preparing their own local plans, London local authorities have to “demonstrate conformity” with the London Plan’s accessible housing requirements.

But concerns about the mayor’s failure to enforce his accessible homes standards emerged from last week’s electoral hustings on disability, at which Conservative candidate Susan Hall, Labour’s Sadiq Khan and Liberal Democrat Rob Blackie all failed to turn up (pictured), ahead of next month’s mayoral elections.

Laura Vicinanza, policy and stakeholder engagement manager for Inclusion London, which organised the hustings, said: “In principle, London offers better chances of finding new accessible or adaptable homes as there are higher accessibility standards and targets for new-build homes than the rest of England.

“However, even in London disabled people are struggling to find accessible homes across all tenures and many of us are living in unsuitable accommodation because the supply of accessible homes is not meeting the demand.

“We are extremely concerned that compliance with M4(2) and M4(3) standards has significantly dropped over the years and are urging the mayor of London to thoroughly investigate why new-build approvals and completions are consistently below the targets set out in the London Plan.”

She added: “We do not just need more homes in London, we need the right kind of homes for all, and for this to happen, local authorities have to comply with accessible housing targets.

“However, standards and targets alone are not sufficient.

“We believe councils should go beyond minimum standards and targets and should do so by collecting good quality data about Deaf and disabled people and their needs in their boroughs which is often scarce or non-existent.

“Living in unsuitable accommodation has profound negative implications not just for us disabled people but for society at large.

“Those of us living in unsuitable accommodation are less likely to be in work, are more likely to experience a deterioration in our physical and mental health, are more likely to be admitted to hospital as a result of falls, are more likely to rely on social care and, most importantly, are deprived of our right to live independently.”

The Green Party’s mayoral candidate, Zoe Garbett, did attend last week’s hustings, but her office had not commented on the accessible housing concerns by noon today (Thursday).

The mayor’s figures show that only seven London boroughs managed to ensure that at least 10 per cent of new homes approved in 2019-20 were suitable for wheelchair-users.

In Barking and Dagenham, less than four per cent of about 4,000 new homes met the wheelchair standard in that year, while less than 30 per cent were going to be accessible and adaptable and meet the M4(2) standard.

In Lewisham, only 22 per cent of 843 approvals of new homes were set to be accessible and adaptable, with only about five per cent suitable for wheelchair-users.

And in Newham, only 34 per cent were accessible and adaptable, and just four per cent met the wheelchair standard.

In all, of more than 63,000 new homes approved in 2019-20, only 47 per cent were seen as accessible and adaptable, and another seven per cent were suitable for wheelchair-users.

In 2018-19, 60 per cent of approvals were accessible and adaptable, while nine per cent were suitable for wheelchair-users.

And in 2017-18, just 57 per cent were accessible and adaptable, with only seven per cent of new homes approved suitable for wheelchair-users.

In that year, 1,879 new homes were approved in Havering, but only 24 of them (just over one per cent) were going to be accessible and adaptable, and just two (0.11 per cent) were going to be suitable for wheelchair-users.

The mayor’s data tables also show figures for new homes completed in each year.

Of new homes completed in 2022-23, less than five per cent were suitable for wheelchair-users, and 41 per cent were built to M4(2).

In 2021-22, nine per cent of those completed were suitable for wheelchair-users, while only 49 per cent met the M4(2) standard.

In 2020-21, the figures were eight per cent and 48 per cent; in 2019-20, they were seven per cent and 58 per cent; in 2018-19, they were just under 10 per cent (9.73 per cent) and 62 per cent; and in 2017-18, they were nine per cent and 53 per cent.

The mayor had not commented on the figures by noon today.

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