Nursery World - Crumbling foundations

There are more than one million children in the UK living in poor housing. <B>Annette Rawstrone</B> looks at the consequences of this on their health and behaviour

'The connection between the health of the nation and the dwellings of the population is one of the most important that exists,' noted Florence Nightingale in the 19th century. But many families today continue to live in poor housing and temporary accommodation, enduring the associated health, educational and social problems that this brings.

'Some of the houses we visit are in an appalling state,' says June Aird, outreach project worker at Red Road Women's Centre in Glasgow. 'Houses are let to families without there being the money to do repairs - on many occasions I have seen toilet pans not sealed to the floor properly, no internal doors and appalling kitchens with just a sink and a unit - which is simply not feasible for families with two or more children. Many of the houses have damp problems which result in mum and children all sleeping in the same room.

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