Housing professionals have warned that budget cuts will result in a loss of support for vulnerable young people. Members of the Chartered Institute of Housing’s (CIH) UK housing panel estimate budget cuts of between 10 and 50 per cent from the start of the new financial year in April. When asked about the impact of changes to housing related support services, 27 per cent of the CIH panel said there would be service reductions, 17 per cent predicted lower tenancy sustainability and increased homelessness and 15 per cent predicted staff reductions. Sarah Davies, senior policy officer at CIH, said that cuts to services would put many young people at risk saying the most affected would be care leavers, pregnant and homeless young people. "Many young people need advice on managing their finances and tenancy agreements; if they don’t learn these skills the homelessness problem will increase," she said. "There will be less floating support for young people, which reduces the amount of help and guidance available to them." Davies said suitable temporary accommodation may also be reduced in favour of bed and breakfast style accommodation that does not have care services attached. Read more on the Children and Young People Now website.
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