Revisions to the Residential Space Standards

WQ.464/2025

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

BY DEPUTY A.F. CURTIS OF ST. CLEMENT

QUESTION SUBMITTED ON MONDAY 8th DECEMBER 2025 ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON MONDAY 15th DECEMBER 2025

Question

"Further to Supplementary Planning Guidance: Residential Space Standards: Review' (R.170/2025) and the November 2025 revisions to the Standards, will the Minister advise –

1. how an increase in price of "around £50,000", should 1-bedroom 1-person units be removed, was assessed and calculated;
2. which sites, if any, he visited as part of the review;
3. the range of policy options considered in his deliberations; and
4. in respect of the reduction of the minimum bedroom size of 1-bedroom 1-person units –

1. the evidence presented to show that this was the appropriate size for a principal bedroom;
2. the number of units with bedrooms of 8 m2 or less, if any, that he visited;
3. the design assessments, if any, undertaken of bedroom layouts at 8 m2; and
4. whether he, or any of his Officers, undertook any discussions with third parties regarding the reduction in size prior to publication of the review?"

Answer

1. The approximate increase in cost arising as a consequence of the removal of the one-bed/one- person unit specification from planning guidance was arrived at through advice obtained from the development industry.

Specific advice was provided which stated that excluding costs such as land value, demolitions, professional fees, finance and POA requirements, the basic cost of constructing an apartment is around £4,600 per sqm. A 41 sqm 1 person apartment would, therefore, cost around £188,600 to build, whereas a 52sqm 2-person apartment would cost around £239,200 - £50,600 more. Whether for rent or purchase, the difference between the two must be funded by somebody, usually the tenant or purchaser'.

2. The Minister for the Environment visited the following sites as part of his review of this matter:

1. 1875, Wesley Street (1b/2p)
2. Apt 05, La Fregoniere, Wellington Road (1b/2p)
3. Apt 108, Westview (1b/2p)
4. Apt 315, Westview (1b/1p)
5. 3 Maison Les Arches (studio/1p)
6. 9 Maison Les Arches (1b/1p)
7. 14 Maison Les Arches (1b/2p)

viii.  67 Le Clos Couriard (1b/1p)

9. 60 Le Clos Couriard (1b/1p)
10. 103 Clos du Samares (studio/1p)
11. 104 Clos du Samares (1b/1p)

3. As part of his review, the Minister considered a range of options including:

1. removing the one-bed/one-person minimum standard

2. increasing the one-bed/one-person minimum standard gross internal area
3. changing various parameters of the one-bed/one-person specification including:
   1. reducing the minimum bedroom size
   2. increasing the ceiling height; and
4. introducing a threshold for the proportion of one-bed/one-person homes

4. (i) The minimum specification of eight square metres floorspace for a single bedroom, established by the revision of residential space standards in 2023, represents an increase in size compared to this standard in previous guidance.

Earlier guidance (A Minimum Specification for New Housing Developments (January 2009)), required that the floor area of single bedrooms should be no less than 6.5 sqm; and that the minimum size of a single bedroom in a two-bedroom three-person dwelling should be no smaller than 7.4 sqm. This guidance noted that It will be preferable in family dwellings that the single bedroom is larger to allow for study and inclusion of a desk, chair and bookcase.'

The minimum floorspace standard for a single bedroom in Jersey exceeds the UK's Technical housing standards – nationally described space standard which requires that in order to provide one bedspace, a single bedroom has a floor area of at least 7.5 sqm'.

Jersey's standard of eight sqm reflects the standard that was identified in the London Housing Design Guide (interim edition). The minimum areas for the space provided in rooms set out in this interim guidance had been established by considering the activity and furniture requirements of the Homes and Communities Agency's legacy HQI standardsand the Lifetime Homes requirement for basic circulation space for wheelchair users within bedrooms'.

2. The Minister did not inspect any units containing bedrooms of eight square metres or smaller as none of the flats visited had bedrooms of this size. It is evident that a minimum standard requires rooms to be no less than this threshold: the Minister's guidance explicitly encourages the exceedance of minimum standards. Establishing the minimum bedroom size for a single-person household at 8.0 sqm might, however, help to discourage the creation of rooms that could accommodate more than one occupant, thereby reducing the risk of overcrowding, which was part of the concern expressed in the proposition which requested that the guidance be reviewed.

Lowering the minimum bedroom size for single-person households, compared with the previously adopted standard, offers developers and designers greater flexibility in allocating space. This allows them to provide additional room for activities such as home-working - whether by enlarging the living area or the bedroom - based on their assessment of preferences and market demand.

3. See (i) above.
4. As stated in the response to c) above, the reduction in the minimum specification for a one-bed/one-person household was one of the options considered by the Minister and this was the subject of consideration with some development stakeholders prior to the Minister determining the revision to guidance.