Crisis welcomes housing benefit breakthrough
15 December 2009
The Government has announced a consultation on proposals to reform housing benefit, after a campaign from homelessness charity Crisis that accused the current system of trapping people in unemployment and poverty.
Crisis, the national charity for single homeless people, launched a campaign in 2008 which highlighted several problems benefit claimants faced trying to make the transition into work. Housing benefit would be withdrawn too quickly and steeply from people starting work, often leaving them worse off than when reliant on benefits, and at risk of falling into arrears or even eviction.
The housing benefit consultation announced by DWP today includes proposals to let people keep their full payments for three months after moving into work, and also setting fixed awards for up to six months to remove some of the uncertainty that comes with going back to work.
Leslie Morphy, Chief Executive of Crisis, said: "Crisis has long been campaigning for comprehensive reform of housing benefit and we are delighted that the Government is finally announcing proposals today that should ease the transition from benefits to work by gradually winding down, as opposed to slashing, housing benefit payments to people who start new and often transient jobs.
"We are also delighted that the Government has taken note of the campaign run by Crisis and reversed its intention to make changes to Local Housing Allowance rules by removing the £15 a week from their benefit as a result of them having found a property cheaper than their allowance. The proposal would have hit some of the poorest tenants hardest.
"We have waited far too long for these reforms of Housing Benefit to help support people moving into work so it will be vital that that they are implemented as quickly as possible. We also need to see wider reform in some areas, such as reintroducing choice for all tenants as to whom their benefit is paid. And we will need to ensure that the positive changes are not balanced by cuts elsewhere, in particular in the levels of benefit payable and the ability of poor tenants to be able to afford to rent a property where they need to".
Ends
For further media information, please contact Garry Lemon on 020 7426 3880 or garry.lemon@crisis.org.uk
Notes to editors
Crisis has long campaigned for reform of Housing Benefit to ensure it delivers real Benefits not Barriers http://www.crisis.org.uk/pages/benefits_not_barriers.html
Local Housing Allowance (LHA) is the new housing benefit for private tenants, introduced from April 2008. Crisis research highlighted that removing the choice for most tenants to have their rent paid to their landlord has resulted in rent arrears, evictions and reluctance among landlords to let to LHA recipients: http://www.crisis.org.uk/publications-search.php?fullitem=237
The Crisis Poor choice: stop cuts to the poorest opposed a Government proposal to change Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rules. It would have meant that the private tenants receiving LHA - a form of housing benefit introduced in April 2008 for tenants in the private sector - would no longer be able to shop around and keep up to £15 a week where they find a property cheaper than the allowance. This cut would have meant some of the poorest tenants, who are already struggling on very low incomes, would suddenly lose up to £15 a week. This reduction could be as much as 20% of income for the poorest tenants.
Crisis warned in our response to Government firstly that this could have led to increases in debt, rent arrears and, in the worst cases, homelessness. Moreover, such a cut is unlikely to generate the cost savings the Government hopes, because claimants would no longer have had an incentive to seek cheaper properties
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.
