Defence Secretary John Healey has declared that a major programme to rectify the scandal of poor-quality military housing is ahead of schedule, with 1,000 of the worst properties already upgraded in time for Christmas.
Accelerated Upgrades for Service Families
In a significant boost to the initiative, Mr Healey has now ordered a further 250 military homes to receive priority improvements in the coming months. This represents a 25% increase on the original target set just eight months ago, dramatically accelerating the effort to provide decent accommodation for armed forces personnel and their families.
The nationwide refurbishment programme has so far seen work completed on almost 700 homes in England, over 150 in Northern Ireland, more than 100 in Wales, and over 50 in Scotland. The comprehensive makeovers have addressed long-standing issues, including installing new flooring, replacing faulty boilers and heating systems, repairing hundreds of leaky roofs, and fitting new bathrooms, kitchens, windows, and doors.
Ending a 'Shameful' Scandal
Speaking exclusively to The Mirror at Colchester Garrison, the Defence Secretary condemned the past state of service family accommodation. He described it as "one of the biggest scandals in this country in recent years," citing conditions where personnel faced cold, damp, mould in children's bedrooms, and leaking roofs.
Mr Healey directly linked the poor housing to morale and retention crises within the armed forces. "When people say why is morale at rock bottom, as it was a few years ago, why are a record number leaving the forces, very often it’s the quality of homes," he stated. He believes the upgrade programme will have a tangible impact on raising morale and aiding recruitment.
The current drive follows the Labour government's move, within six months of the election, to take 36,000 military family homes back into public ownership, ending a controversial outsourcing contract. This paved the way for a £9 billion investment over the next decade, which aims to upgrade or rebuild nine out of ten service family homes.
A New Home for Christmas
The human impact of the upgrades is already being felt. Corporal Jack Crean, his partner Nina, and their one-year-old son Charlie have recently moved into a refurbished home at Bassingbourn Barracks in Cambridgeshire.
"We are really pleased to be in our new home for Christmas," Cpl Crean said. "Everyone is a lot happier here, especially Charlie. It’s nice to live in an up-to-date house, it works so much better for the whole family."
Mr Healey expressed a personal sense of progress, stating, "for the first time, I feel proud that we’re starting to write this wrong." He vowed that the government would continue its efforts until it could "genuinely say over the coming years, we’ll fix this scandal once and for all," ensuring military families have homes truly fit for heroes.
