Youth homelessness could be increased by housing benefit cuts
- 18 Mar
New research has found that plans to ban 19-21 year olds on jobseeker's allowance from claiming housing benefit would save taxpayers less than the government's estimate and increase youth homelessness.
Research has found that taxpayers would save £3m rather than the estimated £120m from stopping young people from claiming housing benefit, whilst also increasing the number of young people who are homeless.
Heriot-Watt University and campaign group End Youth Homelessness' report - ‘Lifeline not Lifestyle' -reveals that not only would savings be small, but only 140 additional young people than estimated by the research would need to become homeless for new claimant restrictions to actually begin costing taxpayers, reports 24dash.
The report looks at councils' duties to house people with priority need and concludes that if these groups were not exempted local authorities would need to pay for accommodation via their own budgets
Using conservative assumptions Heriot-Watt University researchers estimate that exempting these and a number of other vulnerable groups would reduce potential government savings by £50m.
Seyi Obakin, CEO of the youth homelessness charity Centrepoint, a member of EYH, said: "Implementing this cut to housing benefit would be simply catastrophic, forcing thousands of young people back on to the streets. For the most vulnerable young people in this country housing benefit is not a lifestyle, it's a lifeline. We recognise the aim of reducing the welfare bill, but the price of leaving thousands of young people without a safety net is one that no government should be prepared to pay. This report sends a clear message to all political parties in this country that there is no economic case for cutting housing benefit for 18-21 year-olds. Currently many young people face an uncertain future when it comes to finding a place to live and speculation about what might happen to housing benefit after the election only adds to this uncertainty. We urge all political parties to now rule out any more changes to housing benefit so that some of the most vulnerable young people in the country can move towards employment from a firm housing foundation."
What do you think of this? Tweet us your comments @suppsolutions
Related articles
- 02 Nov
THE ONS PLANS TO CHANGE THEIR DECISION TO MAKE HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS PUBLIC BODIES
According to reports by 24 Housing, the ONS said the following:Gavin Smart, Chartered Institute of Housing's deputy chief executive also said:"Although we have been expecting this decision for some...
- 30 Aug
RECENT ANALYSIS FINDS THAT THE HELP TO BUY SCHEME HAS ADDED TO THE INFLATION OF HOUSE PRICES
The analysis of the Help to Buy Scheme revealed the following:The chief executive of Paradigm Housing Group, Matthew Bailes, said:" ... clearly, it worked well for developers, and for providers, it...
- 22 Aug
A NORTH WALES COUNCIL REVEALED THEIR WAITING LIST FOR NEW HOMES HAS REACHED BREAKING POINT
The north Wales Council revealed their waiting list for new homes has reached "breaking point".According to Clare Budden, Flintshire Council's community enterprise chief officer said:"There are...
- 17 Aug
HOMELESSNESS POLICY IS UNDER REVIEW IN A NORTHAMPTONSHIRE COUNCIL
Kettering Borough Council has amended its letters to homeless residents to let them know of their right to request a temporary accommodation review.According to an ombudsman, Michael King:"People in...
- 15 Aug
FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS HAVE CAUSED THE CLOSURE OF MANY CHILDREN AND YOUTH CENTRES
Local Government Association (LGA) made the following findings:Chair of the LGA's children and young people board, Richard Watts, said: "The reality is that services for the care and protection of...
- 11 Aug
RESIDENTS OF BUILDINGS IN LEDBURY ESTATE, SOUTHWARK, SOUTH LONDON WILL BE MOVED OUT TEMPORARILY
The buildings in Ledbury Estate in Southwark have been constructed in a similar way to Ronan Point, a tower block in Newham which collapsed in 1968 as a result of a gas explosion, killing three. An...
- 10 Aug
THERE IS A DECLINE IN THE HOUSING MARKET IN LONDON AND OTHER PARTS OF THE SOUTH EAST OF ENGLAND
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) made the following findings:Chief Economist at Rics, Simon Rubinsohn:"Sales activity in the housing market has been slipping in the recent month...
- 07 Aug
REPORT FINDS THAT PEOPLE ARE INTENSELY SUFFERING FROM LACK OF AFFORDABLE HOMES IN SCOTLAND
According to the report by "Shelter":Shelter's deputy director, Alison Watson, said:"This report shows the disproportionate impact of Scotland's housing crisis on young people and private renters who...
- 02 Aug
NEW REPORT BY THE PUBLIC ACCOUNT COMMITTEE IN WALES COMMENDS HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS
The report which was put together after nine months of inquiries stated the following:Nick Ramsey, Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said:"Generally, we found governance and regulation within...
- 31 Jul
LONDON COUNCIL URGES THE GOVERNMENT TO MAKE MEASURES TO END LETTING FEES FOR PRIVATE RENTERS
The London council say urgent action is needed because the government has not provided "a clear timescale to introduce its own measure", Letting Agent Today, reports.Last year, the government had...
Responding to the DWP Consultation: Housing Benefit Reform - Supported Housing "I found the event informative and timely it helped me to complete our response to DWP without which I would have struggled." S.S. - Safe House
