Starter Homes Will 'Stymie Social Mobility'

David Cameron’s pledge to help generation rent buy a “roof of their own” will help only higher earners, and could have a negative impact on social mobility, housing experts have warned. Shelter said the policy would create homes that were out of reach for families on average earnings in 58% of the country by 2020. Its chief executive, Campbell Robb, said: “You don’t solve an affordability crisis by getting rid of the few affordable homes we’re building, yet that’s exactly what this policy will do.” Robb said the homes would “too often only be ‘affordable’ for higher earners”. He added: “There’s nothing wrong with helping people on to the property ladder, but the government has to invest in genuinely affordable homes to buy and rent for all of those on ordinary incomes who are bearing the brunt of this crisis.” Read more on the Guardian website.

We Cannot Support The NHF’s Proposal To Housing Associations

The National Housing Federation has announced a proposed ‘voluntary deal’ under which housing associations would extend the Right to Buy to their tenants, and gave its members eight days to vote for or against the deal. Shelter chief executive Campbell Robb has written an open letter to England’s housing associations, saying he cannot support something that at its heart demands the likely sale of over 100,000 vital council homes on the open market to fund the up-to-£100,000 discounts for a lucky few tenants. The agreement, he continues, could help secure HA’s independence into the future, though one could as easily argue that accepting a threat-backed deal signals independence diminished. Read more on the Shelter website.

Number of Homeless Families Soars 47%

The number of families forced out of their homes has sky-rocketed by 47% since the introduction of housing benefit cuts, government figures show. Housing charity Shelter has blamed cuts to housing benefits, which were first introduced by the coalition when they came to power in 2011. The jump in homelessness has occurred between the second quarter of 2011, when the cuts came in, and the second quarter of 2015. The chief executive of Shelter, Campbell Robb said: “These figures are a stark warning that relentless rent rises and welfare cuts have contributed to thousands of hard-pressed families losing their home.  More cuts to housing benefit, while doing nothing to tackle the ridiculous cost of housing is short-sighted at best."  Read more on the Daily Mirror website.

Fear of Political Embarrassment Driving Flawed Universal Credit Roll Out

Even if the flaws are not ironed out of universal credit, fear of political embarrassment will force the government to roll it out before the next general election, the head of Shelter has warned.  Campbell Robb, the housing charity’s chief executive, said even though the welfare policy was a ‘disaster’, ministers would be forced to implement it before May 2015 because the government had ‘so much riding on it’.  ‘This has got disaster written all over it, but I’m afraid that political necessity will override that in the short term,’ he added. Read more on Inside Housing.

Families Priced Out By Benefits Cap

Shelter is urging the Government to consider the damage inflicted on families by cuts to housing benefit.  Commenting on the news that Newham council in East London is trying to find homes as far away as Stoke for families priced out of their area by rising rents and the Government's new cap on housing benefits, Shelter’s Chief Executive Campbell Robb said: ‘This is the terrifying reality of our housing crisis today – hundreds of families potentially forced to move half way across the country, uprooted from schools, support networks and employment opportunities. ‘Most worryingly, this is only the thin end of the wedge, as further reductions in the housing safety net start to bite over the coming months. ‘The dangerous cocktail of cuts to housing benefit and spiralling rents is making finding a decent home increasingly unaffordable for families across the country.’  Read more on the Shelter website.