Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The Survey of English Housing (SEH) was a continuous annual survey series, which began in 1993. The survey provided key housing data on tenure, owner occupation and the social rented sector, and regular information about the private rented sector. The survey was originally sponsored by the Department of the Environment, which became the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions in time for the 1996-1997 survey, then the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, by 2000-2001. Responsibility for the SEH was transferred to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister after the fieldwork for the 2002-2003 survey commenced, and on 5 May 2006 the series became part of the remit of the newly-established Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The main aims of the SEH were to provide regular information about the main features of people's housing and their views about their circumstances, and information about the private rented sector (not covered by routine administrative statistics like the owner-occupied and social rented sectors). From 2008, the SEH merged with the English House Condition Survey (EHCS) to form the new English Housing Survey (EHS). The last SEH dataset is the 2007-2008 study. The EHS data are available at the UK Data Archive under GN 33422. Further information about the SEH and the EHS may be found on the DCLG web site Survey of English Housing and English Housing Survey web pages.

Main Topics:

The SEH comprises a main core of factual questions that remain largely unchanged from year to year, and cover tenure, housing costs and difficulties with mortgage/rent payments, housing history, moving intentions, and the type of home desired. The survey also carries a set of attitudinal questions which are revised/rotated each year. The 1995-1996 dataset contains six datafiles relating to different units of analysis: household file - information about each sampled household interviewed; individual file - information about each individual in each household interviewed; family unit file - information about each family unit in each household interviewed; waiting list file - information about each waiting list group in each household interviewed; private renting tenancy group file - information about each private renting tenancy group; tenancy group individual file - information about each individual in each tenancy group interviewed. Topics covered include: Household Interview: All households: demographic data; type of accommodation; second homes; tenure. Tenants: subletting; rooms and accommodation characteristics; sharing; moves and housing history; repossessions; social sector housing waiting lists; homelessness; satisfaction with present accommodation; problems with neighbours; residents' associations; features of the area; improvements to the area; underoccupation; security of tenure; preferred accommodation; satisfaction with the area. Owners: previous experience of owning; trading up and trading down; source and amount of present mortgage; mortgage arrears; interest in renting. Social sector renters: interest in buying; grants and schemes to help tenants buy; experience of owning; housing benefit and rent; rent arrears; tenants' rights and relationship with landlord; views about different types of landlord; tenants' charter; employment; homeworking; occupation; income. Private Renters' Module: Tenancy group composition; tenancy characteristics; rent and housing benefit; services included in rent; securing the accommodation; rent arrears; first application for housing benefit; finding the accommodation; pre-tenancy rent determinations for housing benefit; relations with landlord; moves in last three years; buying/moving intentions; employment of head of tenancy group; income, and income from government schemes, self employment, employment, second jobs, pensions, regular payments, savings, maintenance payments, state benefits and other sources; tax paid, total net and gross income of individual and tenancy group. Standard Measures Standard Occupation Coding.

Multi-stage stratified random sample

Face-to-face interview

CAPI used.