Charity Calls For Major Changes To Bedroom Tax

The Liverpool City Region Child Poverty and Life Chances Commission is calling on the government to initiate a major overhaul of the Bedroom Tax. The commission’s chairman, Frank Field, has set out evidence gained by the commission on the impact of the Bedroom Tax on poorer families with children:

·         112 families with children (83% of respondents to the commission’s survey) have cut back on their food budgets

·         96 families with children (71%) have cut back on essential household bills

·         67 families with children (49%) have resorted to payday loans

·         115 families with children (85%) are not currently looking to move home, due to a lack of suitable alternative accommodation into which they could move

Read more on 24housing.

Families Now Most Common Household In Private Rented Sector

Families are the most common household type in the private rented sector (PRS) for the first time, according to the latest research from the National Landlords Association (NLA). The findings show that more landlords now let to families with children (48 per cent) than any other household type, overtaking young couples (47 per cent). This represents a shift compared to four years ago, when young singles made up the largest group (53 per cent), followed by young couples (51 per cent), and then families with children (51 per cent). The PRS now accounts for approximately 5 million households in the United Kingdom. Read more on the NLA website.

Survey Reveals Satisfaction In UK Rental Sector

The private rented sector in the UK has entered a more settled periods with over 80% of tenants satisfied with their landlords and more families renting homes, new research shows. The sector has seen some shifting demographics and overall satisfaction levels remain high, according to the latest survey from Paragon Mortgages, undertaken by BDRC Continental. It found that an increasing proportion of those making a home in the sector are couples with children who now make up 21% and couples at 29%. In addition to this 87% of those surveyed consider the rental sector to be their home and the average length of time spent living in a rented home currently stands at 12 years and 41% of landlords reported an increase in tenant demand in the third quarter of the year. Read more on the Property Wire website.

60% of Households Hit By Benefit Cap Are Families with Children

More than 40,000 households have had their benefits capped by the government since it was introduced last year, according to new figures. Statistics from the DWP also showed that 60% of affected households had between one and four children while 36% had five or more. Enfield has the highest number of capped households across the country and 19 of the top 20 local authority areas affected by the cap are to be found in London.  Read more on the GovUK website.