Private housing

Private sector housing encompasses all privately owned housing stock, such as owner occupied, privately rented accommodation and registered social landlord housing (housing associations), excluding council-owned properties.

Our main duty for private sector housing is to ensure that accommodation is warm, safe, in good repair and meets the Government Decent Home standard (you can download this document below). Additional standards are required for houses in multiple occupation.

If you are experiencing poor living conditions in rented accommodation it is important to know your rights as a tenant (you can download a factsheet below).

If you think your rights are being violated, please contact Environmental Health using the details on the right.

Grants and other assistance

Our Renewal Policy (which provides for grants and other assistance) is currently under review. The revised policy is expected to be in place by April 2012.

Find out more about help for the over 60s.

Find out more about energy efficiency grants.

Community Call alarm service

The Community Call alarm service can give you access to advice and emergency help from your home. Our dedicated and highly trained team of staff at the control centre in High Wycombe is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to answer your calls.

Who is the service for?

The service is designed for vulnerable people who may be at risk of:

• Falling over
• Burglary and bogus callers
• Being isolated in an emergency

This includes:

• Elderly people
• People with disabilities
• People living alone
• People with health problems

Many of our customers do not contact us very often, but feel confident in the knowledge that help is available in an emergency. For further details please contact Red Kite Community Housing via the link below.

Private sector housing policies and strategies

Our private sector housing renewal policy sets out the provision of assistance for residents living in the district. This policy is currently under review.

We are also reviewing our current empty property strategy designed to provide a co-ordinated approach to return properties that have been empty for more than twelve months to the available housing stock. Help and assistance is available to landlords of empty properties, see the link below.