The English Housing Survey

Anne Beesley – Department for Communities and Local Government

anne.beesley@communities.gsi.gov.uk

Direct line : 0303 4441110

ehs@communities.gsi.gov.uk

The English Housing Survey

– new survey launched in April 2008– major new initiative for DCLG– brought together two previous DCLG

surveys • The Survey of English Housing (SEH)• The English House Condition Survey (EHCS)

Survey of English Housing

• annual from 1993-94 to 2007-08• household survey• annual datasets – household level; person

level; tenancy level• SEH15 – key household level data from each

of the 15 years

English House Condition Survey• First survey in 1967• Every 5 yrs from 1971 to 2001 (20,000 cases)

• Annual from 2002-03 to 2007-08 (8,000 cases)

• Household interview and physical inspection of the property

• Analysis since 2003 on 2 yr basis – 02-03 and 03-04 reported as 2003 etc

English Housing Survey

• Target – to deliver 17k household interviews and 8k physical surveys each year (from 2011: 13,300 interviews and 6,200 physical surveys)

• From 2008-09 to 2011-12 formed part of the wider ONS Integrated Household Survey (IHS)

• Received National Statistics designation in 2010

The EHS Team– Department for Communities and Local

Government (DCLG)– ONS – Primary contractor– Miller Mitchell Burley Lane (MMBL) – Building Research Establishment (BRE) -

(Development Partner)

17k (13k) EHS Household interviews pa

Sub sampling by tenure

8k (6k) Physical

inspections pa

8k Market valuations (08/09

and 09/10 only)

Structure of EHS

EHS Data base

Anonymised data set to UKDA

The EHS interview survey process

– ONS draw random sample of addresses - unclustered; – Fieldwork operates in 8 waves each year – 300+ ONS interviewers work each wave for 4 weeks; – call at each address to conduct a 45 (now 30) minute

interview; identify vacant properties. – About 60% success rate.– Make fixed appointment for surveyor visit– Survey content reviewed annually – changes shown on

documentation

Interview Survey - What information is collected ?

•Household composition / ethnicity / health

•Accommodation size / tenure

•Housing history / housing aspirations

•Mortgages and rents including arrears

•Detailed income module

•Satisfaction with home, neighbourhood, landlord

Interview Survey - What information is collected? - continued

•Tenancy deposits

•Waiting lists

•Succession tenancies

•Adaptations to the home – present / needed (rotating

from 2011/12)

•Work done to the home / damp (08/09 to 10/11)

•Second homes (rotating from 2011/12)

•Fire module - rotating (08/09 and 10/11)

Interview questionnaire available on DCLG website:

www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/pdf/1579782.pdf

• Annotated with variable and datafile names• Details of routing

The Physical Survey– Conducted by around 190 professional surveyors– 4 full time MMBL Regional Managers plus Helpline

team in Edinburgh– Fixed appointment made with householder– Internal and external inspection plus photographs– Dwelling based – key unit of analysis– Also survey vacant properties– Data collected using digital pens– Limited year on year change

Physical survey what is collected?– Construction, size and age of the stock– State of repair and treatment needed– Heating, amenities, insulation measures– Shared facilities and common parts– External plot and neighbourhood quality– Accessibility and adaptations– Health and safety assessments

Physical survey form available on DCLG website:

www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/pdf/1494784.pdf

Annotated with variable and datafile names

Market Value Survey – Web based exercise to collect independent

market valuations of all properties with a physical survey each year

– Valuers receive the photographs and a ‘pen picture ‘ of property collected from the physical survey

– Conducted in 08/09 and 09/10 only

Data modellingRaw data collected by interviewers and surveyors is used with a number of models to create derived indicators including:

•Floor space and property dimensions•Energy efficiency rating •HHSRS rating•Repair costs•Decent home indicator•Wide range of energy indicators being developed including SAP, RDSAP, carbon emissions and energy costs and potential for improvement•Household income/equivalised income

Use of the survey data

– Unique cross cutting evidence base widely used across government

– Has wide policy remit, covering broad set of housing issues e.g. overcrowding; housing aspirations; stock condition and energy efficiency

– Also wide range of external users eg academics, consultants, Shelter, commercial organisations interested in market opportunities

How is the data used?

EHS is a primary evidence base for monitoring and developing government housing and energy related policies:-

• Monitoring housing trends and affordability

• Improving housing conditions for everyone

• Improving energy efficiency and reducing CO2 emissions

• Reducing Fuel Poverty (DECC)

• Supports a wide range of new policy initiatives eg changes to social housing including housing benefit levels.

EHS Reporting– DCLG produce a Headline Report in January/Feb each

year – 2009-10 latest available

– Two detailed annual reports • Household report based on annual FY data sets• Housing stock report based on a two year rolling data set

– Tables on the web site

– Data sets available to external users – UKDA and hopefully also at Secure Data Service

– Visit the web site• www.communities.gov.uk/englishhousingsurvey

EHS Analysis• Answering Parliamentary Questions• Data for reports such as ONS Social Trends• Briefing for Ministers and senior officials• Informing policy development work• Ad-hoc requests from other Departments and LAs• Ad-hoc requests for non-government users – BRE

can provide customised service (fee charged)

Data at the UKDA• Two separate data bases – Household and Housing Stock

• Household data set – For individual financial years

– Includes all cases where a full interview was completed (c17,300 in 08/09)

– Household interview data only – no physical or market value

– Includes ‘derived variables’ from the interview survey eg income; mortgage payments; rents

– User guide and interview questionnaire

– Of most interest to users of former SEH

– Used whenever results are needed solely from the household interview

Data at the UKDA - Housing Stock data

• More complex• Available as a rolling 2 year sample• ‘2008’ data set covers period April 2007 to March 2009• Includes all cases where both an interview and a physical/MVS

have been completed in the 2 year period• Also vacant dwellings where physical survey/MVS completed• About 8k cases per year – so about 16k cases on the 2 year file

Housing Stock Data – continuedIncludes

•The interview, physical and MVS data for all occupied cases •Physical/MVS for vacant cases •Derived variables from both interview and physical survey eg income and energy efficiency and geographic identifiers•Household and dwelling weights – depending whether results needed for households or dwellings•Of particular interest to former users of the EHCS•Used whenever information from the physical survey is required for analysis

Documentation at the UKDA

• Two User Guides

• Interview, physical and MVS ‘questionnaires’

• Data dictionaries

• Missing data distributor

• EHS Reports

Information on the DCLG web sitewww.communities.gov.uk/housing/housingresearch/

housingsurveys/englishhousingsurvey/

• EHS News, Bulletins, Reports and Tables• EHS User Consultations• Information for survey users

• Background on methodology and purpose• Technical Advice Notes – sampling, grossing, data quality etc• Questionnaires• Summaries of changes made to the questionnaires each year

• Information for respondents• FAQs

Key issues for users• Using the right data set for each piece of analysis• Merging in files correctly• Applying the right ‘weights’• Including the right cases• Making use of derived variables wherever possible• Checking sample sizes are adequate• Are results consistent with published figures?• Dealing with missing data