Posted 17.02.14
As part of its work in monitoring and evaluating the impacts of the welfare reforms on its members and their tenants, the National Housing Federation (NHF) commissioned Ipsos MORI to undertaking a major research project.
The survey looked at the impacts of the reforms in the six months from April 2013. Responses were received from 183 housing associations, accounting for 66% of the general needs rented stock owned or managed by NHF members.
The survey found that:
66% of the residents hit by the Bedroom Tax are in rent arrears, with more than a third (38%) reported to be in debt because they were unable to pay the bedroom tax.
This is equivalent to 72,000 housing association tenants in England alone who are in rent arrears because of the policy.
As rent arrears build up, letters are automatically sent out warning residents they are at risk of eviction.
More than one in seven households (15%) hit by the Bedroom Tax had received an eviction risk letter by October 2013 and are in danger of losing their homes.
Housing associations have invested millions of pounds to mitigate the impacts of the bedroom tax.
Each housing association with affected tenants spent an average of £73,250 on additional resources before April 2013 to help their residents prepare and cope, including welfare and financial advice services.
It is estimated that associations are spending even more this year, an extra £109,000 each on average, by March 2014, with larger associations spending up to £2.18 million.
Click here download the full report or an executive summary.
Posted 11.02.14
A new report by the Papworth Trust finds that over three quarters of councils are ignoring the Government on emergency housing payments and are penalising disabled people as a result.
The Government asked councils to prioritise these payments, known as Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs), for disabled people who live in adapted homes and are affected by the 'Bedroom Tax'.
However Freedom of Information requests to 222 local authorities across the UK show that more non-disabled people are receiving the payments than disabled people.
Papworth Trust Strategy Director David Martin said:
"Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is not supposed to cover housing costs. However three quarters of councils are ignoring Government guidance to not take DLA into account when means testing these payments, so disabled people appear to have a higher income than non-disabled people. As a result, a third of disabled people are refused emergency housing payments.
"Our ongoing research into the effects of 'Bedroom Tax' has shown that almost 9 in 10 disabled people refused these payments are then cutting back on essentials, like food and drink or household bills.
"This policy is penalising disabled people living in adapted homes. We are calling on the Government to immediately ban councils from taking DLA into account when assessing income, as they have already done for other means tested benefits such as Housing Benefit."
Posted 07.02.14
Local Government Secretary, Eric Pickles, has called on councils to take up the offer of additional central government funding to help freeze Council Tax this year.
Since 2010, the Government has worked with local authorities to freeze Council Tax. A further freeze offer is on available this year and next, and was announced by the Chancellor in June 2013. The Government is providing up to £550 million in extra Whitehall grants, to each local authority that freezes their bills from this April.
New figures just published reveal that 137 local authorities have already indicated they will accept the Government's offer of extra funding - click here for further details. The figures also show each council's track record since 2010. Final decisions from all local authorities will be known next month.
From April 2014, funding for 2011 to 2012 and 2013 to 2014 freezes is now in the main local government settlement total for future years. Funding for the next 2 freeze years will also be built into the spending review baseline. This will give maximum possible certainty for councils that the extra funding for freezing Council Tax will remain available, and there will not be a 'cliff edge' effect from the freeze grant disappearing in due course.
