This Information Paper summarises the results of a research project commissioned by BRE Trust to develop a method of quantifying the cost of poor housing, and the cost-benefit of interventions to improve such housing.

The full technical report was published as 'The real cost of poor housing' and since its publication, the results have been used to evaluate the cost-benefit of real housing interventions by local authorities.

This Paper provides feedback on some of the early practical uses of the research and, in particular, how it has been used to quantify the health benefits of energy efficiency measures that improve homes beyond the average for their age and type. The original research suggested that undertaking basic improvements to reduce the hazards in poor housing to an acceptable level could save the National Health Service some £600 million a year. Subsequent BRE Trust sponsored research reported here suggests that this saving could be doubled if more comprehensive improvements to the heating and insulation of cold homes are undertaken.