Category: News
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New light pink shades added to Defence Homes colour palette
Following feedback from Service families, we are updating our Defence Homes Colour Palette this spring to introduce five new light pink shades. This update is part of our ongoing commitment to modernise outdated policies and give families greater freedom to make their homes feel like their own. Previously, all walls had to be returned to magnolia or white before moving out. With the
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Let’s get building: MOD set to start construction on first military homes in a decade
Good homes will be placed at the heart of UK military family life as the MOD is set to begin the construction of 265 new military family houses at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, the first such development in almost a decade. Families living in the area will see a range of new, modern apartments, houses and bungalows begin to be built at Carterton near the air base
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Investment in Woolwich for military families returning to the UK
Representatives from DIO visited a refurbishment project in Woolwich, which will see £10m investment into improving the housing estate. This includes refurbishments to 130 homes, ahead of the return of the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment that has been deployed to Cyprus over the last two years. DIO Operations Director South, Sebastian O’Hara, was joined by colleagues from VIVO to see firsthand the progress being made in the area. Each home has been assessed
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Sharing innovation within the accommodation industry
On 26 February 2026, DIO hosted its first Research and Development Day at the DIO Headquarters in Whittington. The event was an opportunity for businesses of all shapes and sizes to come together to share their innovative projects and express how these new technologies can be used to improve Service Family Accommodation. Several technologies were exhibited including modern ventilation systems,
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New Armed Forces Bill to drive the biggest renewal of Service Family housing in a generation
Service families will benefit from the newly introduced Armed Forces Bill which promises better housing, better services and better protections for our forces and their families. The Bill will create a new Defence Housing Service, which will have a simple ethos – to put the needs of forces and their families first and drive
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1,000 homes upgraded for military families this Christmas
Military families across the UK will celebrate Christmas in their newly improved homes with more upgrades promised in the new year. Urgent works on The 1000 homes, most in need of refurbishment, have finished ahead of schedule, with a further 250 to be completed by April, 2026. This means that 12 months on from the Consumer Charter launch, we will have increased our initial target by 25%. The first phase of work has taken
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Rapid refurbishment works transforming military homes across the UK
Service family homes across the UK are being upgraded as part of improvement works to rapidly raise the standards of military accommodation. DIO is on track to deliver on our commitment to carry out targeted renovations to 1,000 homes before the end of 2025. Over 100 of the properties selected for rapid upgrade works are
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The Future of Defence Housing questionnaire results published
Over 6,300 Service families have shaped the future of Defence housing through their contribution to the Future of Defence Housing Questionnaire, which has been published today. The Ministry of Defence, along with the Tri-Service Families Federations, shared the questionnaire in June 2025 to develop the Defence Housing Strategy, which was launched last week. The
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Minister for Veterans and People visits Bassingbourn to see SFA improvements
The Minister for Veterans and People, Louise Sandher-Jones visited Bassingbourn Barracks on 6 November to see first-hand how service personnel and their families are set to benefit from the biggest transformation of military housing in more than 50 years, as part of the new Defence Housing Strategy announced earlier this week. Rapid improvements are underway to raise the minimum standard of 1,000 of the worst military family homes and almost
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Defence Housing Strategy published
On 3 November 2025 the Secretary of State for Defence, John Healey, announced the publication of The Defence Housing Strategy. Independently led by a team of experts and driven by the input of more than 6,000 service families, this document sets out the most significant change for Armed Forces housing in over 50 years. It