The Ministry of Defence has confirmed it has upgraded 1,000 of the worst Service Family Accommodation ahead of schedule, meeting a Consumer Charter commitment eight months after launch. The MOD press notice, published on 24 December 2025, also adds a further 250 properties for priority works over the coming months.
Delivery has been through the Raising the Minimum Standards programme, with activity recorded across the UK: nearly 700 homes in England, over 150 in Northern Ireland, more than 100 in Wales and over 50 in Scotland. English sites include over 200 homes in Wiltshire and Windsor, alongside Bassingbourn, Swanton Morley, Woodbridge and Uxbridge.
Typical works include replacing unreliable boilers and heating systems, repairing leaky roofs and addressing damp, alongside new bathrooms, kitchens, windows and doors. Defence Infrastructure Organisation updates describe a focus on the poorest‑condition homes, with energy‑efficiency measures such as solar panels trialled at Bassingbourn.
The MOD situates this early delivery within a ten‑year Defence Housing Strategy, published on 3 November 2025 and backed by £9 billion. The plan aims to modernise or rebuild more than 40,000 homes-covering nine in ten properties-and to establish a new Defence Housing Service with a ‘Forces First’ ethos.
Control of the estate was strengthened by the government’s buy‑back of 36,347 military homes from Annington. Contracts were exchanged in December 2024, with completion announced on 9 January 2025, ending an annual rent bill of about £230 million and saving more than £600,000 per day, according to official statements.
The Consumer Charter, launched on 18 April 2025, sets a tougher move‑in standard, clearer pre‑move information and time‑bound urgent repairs consistent with Awaab’s Law, supported by an online repairs portal. A streamlined two‑stage complaints process took effect on 1 October 2025. The MOD has also committed to a named Housing Officer for each family and begun modernising policies to allow personalisation and pet ownership.
The department says hundreds more properties will be upgraded in the coming months, with priority works completed by the spring. Given the publication date of 24 December 2025, this indicates activity continuing into spring 2026; families should receive local notifications as programmes are sequenced.
For households, the immediate effect is a higher baseline for habitability and clearer accountability during occupation. MOD reporting points to an upward trend in monthly customer satisfaction surveys as Charter measures bed in, though sustained progress will depend on repairs performance through winter.
For estate managers and suppliers, the concentration of work in Wiltshire and Windsor, and at sites including Bassingbourn, Swanton Morley, Woodbridge and Uxbridge, suggests a steady pipeline through early 2026. Coordinating heating, roofing and fabric upgrades to minimise revisits will be central to maintaining occupancy and limiting disruption.
The 2025 delivery sequence is now clear: the Consumer Charter launched on 18 April; the two‑stage complaints process began on 1 October; the Defence Housing Strategy was published on 3 November; and on 24 December the MOD confirmed the 1,000‑home upgrade and an extension to 1,250 priority refurbishments. The department says all April 2025 Charter commitments remain on track for year‑end.