Crisis welcomes Conservative commitment to choice in LHA
22 October 2009
Shadow Housing Minister, Grant Shapps MP, has committed to changing the way Local Housing Allowance (LHA) is paid to tenants at the annual conference of Crisis, the national charity for single homeless people.
Leslie Morphy, responding to Grant Shapps' announcement at Crisis' conference in Birmingham, said: "We welcome the commitment announced today by the Shadow Housing Minister, Grant Shapps that the Conservatives would reintroduce the principle of tenants being able to choose whether LHA is paid direct to the landlord
"We all believe in empowering tenants but where tenants themselves are clear that they would rather their rent was paid direct to the landlord as that would help them to budget and manage their finances, then they should have that choice. Research we conducted at Crisis earlier this year highlighted how less than 2 years since its introduction, Local Housing Allowance was resulting in real difficulties for tenants with too many getting into arrears and having their tenancies terminated. This proposal for change announced today cannot come soon enough."
For background see Crisis' research into the experience of Local Housing Allowance:
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For further media information, please contact Garry Lemon on 020 7426 3880/07973 372 587 or garry.lemon@crisis.org.uk
Notes to editors:
Crisis is the national charity for single homeless people. We are dedicated to ending homelessness by delivering life-changing services and campaigning for change. Our innovative education, employment, housing and well-being services address individual needs and help homeless people to transform their lives. We measure our success and can demonstrate tangible results and value for money. We are determined campaigners, working to prevent people from becoming homeless and advocating solutions informed by research and our direct experience. We have ambitious plans for the future and are committed to help more people in more places across the UK. We know we won't end homelessness overnight or on our own. But we take a lead, collaborate with others and together make change happen.
Key statistics from Crisis' research into LHA:
- 92% of respondents said claimants should be able to choose whether they wish to pay rent directly to the landlord or not.
- 82% of respondents have noticed claimants falling behind with their rent payments some or most of the time and a further 11% said LHA claimants always fall behind with their rent.
- 82% of respondents said that under LHA, in their experience, more tenancies are being terminated as a result of rent arrears.
- 81% of respondents said they had made a vulnerability application on behalf of a claimant, 48% of those said that the process of establishing vulnerability is either never clear and straight forward or can be but not very often. 49% either said the vulnerability application rarely resulted in payment to the landlord being established or that it only happens some of the time. Just 16% said that the vulnerability applications they made were always successful.
