MHCLG’s Latest Homelessness Statistics For 2020-2021

MHCLG has released the latest statutory homelessness statistics, covering the period from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021. The statistics capture data on everyone who has been assessed under the Homelessness Reduction Act. Whilst the Homelessness Reduction Act significantly expanded the number of people eligible for homelessness support from their local authority, the statutory statistics still only capture those who access support from Housing Options services. This data helps explain the wider trends, but not those not engaging with support, people experiencing more hidden forms of homelessness or those not entitled to support because of immigration restrictions. According to the latest statistics, 268,560 households were at risk of or experienced homelessness from 2020-21. Read more on the Homeless Link website.

https://homeless.org.uk/connect/blogs/2021/sep/13/stats-summary-mhclg%E2%80%99s-latest-homelessness-statistics-for-2020-2021 

Benefit System Increases Homelessness

 Homeless Link has published a report looking at the links between the benefits system and homelessness. The report concludes that a lack of available, affordable accommodation will make it difficult to move people on from emergency accommodation after the pandemic. A combination of the frozen Local Housing Allowance and the benefits cap means that people simply cannot afford the property that is available.  Download a copy of the report from the Homeless Link website.

https://www.homeless.org.uk/sites/default/files/site-attachments/hl_homelessness%2Bbenefits-london_FINAL-WEB%20%281%29.pdf

Housing First Capacity Has Increased By Almost 600% In Three Years

There has been an almost six-fold increase in the capacity of Housing First services in England since 2017, propelled by an increase in the number of services within social housing, a new report has found. Research by membership organisation Homeless Link found there are 105 active Housing First services in England, compared with 32 in 2017. A total of 87 services responded to a survey carried out as part of this research, which revealed they had a combined capacity to support 1,996 individuals. This can be compared with a similar survey carried out in 2017, which found 28 services had a capacity to support 350 people. Read more on Homeless Link.

https://homeless.org.uk/connect/blogs/2020/dec/03/new-research-reveals-scale-of-expansion-of-housing-first 

Government Announces Funding Of £3.2 Million To Help Rough Sleepers To Self-Isolate

The Government has announced initial emergency funding of £3.2 million to help people who are sleeping rough to self-isolate during the Coronavirus outbreak. The funding will be available to all local authorities in England and will reimburse them for the cost of providing accommodation and services to those sleeping on the streets to help them successfully self-isolate to prevent the spread of the virus. Read more on Homeless Link.

https://homeless.org.uk/connect/news/2020/mar/18/government-announces-initial-emergency-funding-of-%C2%A332-million-to-help

£450,000 Funding Boost For Housing First Projects

Homeless Link has announced a funding injection of £450,000 to five existing Housing First provider across the UK. The Housing First Fund, funded by Comic Relief, aims to extend and improve the support offered to people experiencing chronic homelessness and multiple disadvantage, including physical and mental ill health, substance misuse and histories of offending. Homeless Link’s grants programme sits alongside and will feed back into its Housing First England project, which has been working since 2016 to promote and grow a “national Housing First movement.” Read more on the Homeless Link website.

https://homeless.org.uk/connect/blogs/2019/nov/25/funding-awarded-to-housing-first-services-to-enhance-support

Charities Call On Government To Fix £1bn Hole In Homelessness Services

Nine years of government cuts have left local services for single homeless people with a £1bn a year funding gap, according to research commissioned by St Mungo’s and Homeless Link. The charities are warning that cuts to council budgets are leaving increasing numbers of people at risk on the streets, and calling on the Government to act now to make up the funding shortfall - or face missing its target of ending rough sleeping by 2027. The report, Local Authority Spending on Homelessness,  shows that council spending on support for single homeless people in England fell by 53% between 2008-9 and 2017-18, almost £1bn less a year compared to ten years ago. Download the report from the St Mungos website.

https://www.mungos.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/WPIE-Research-summary-briefing.pdf?x74044

Dying Homeless

At least 78 homeless people died last winter, an average of at least two a week. Those deaths include a quantum physicist, a former soldier and a grieving 31-year-old who had lost both his mother and brother. Some died in doorways, some in tents pitched in the snow, some died in shelters and others passed away in hospital after a life on the streets. Many were rough sleepers, others were statutory homeless and staying in temporary accommodation. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism has surveyed dozens of homeless charities, trawled local press reports and pieced together figures to create a database of those deaths. Read more on the Homeless Link website.

https://www.homeless.org.uk/connect/blogs/2018/may/11/dying-homeless

Youth Homelessness Rise Linked To Welfare Reforms

Government welfare reforms, including the introduction of Universal Credit and the capping of housing benefit, are contributing to a rise in youth homelessness, a report has concluded. The Young and Homeless 2018 report, includes a survey of nearly 200 providers and council representatives. Among homelessness providers, 55 per cent reported an increase in demand among young people for their services over the last year. More than a quarter of young people accessing services over the last 12 months are aged 16 or 17. Those responding to the survey said that a key factor in the rise is the challenges young people face around welfare reforms. Download the report from the Homeless Link website.

https://www.homeless.org.uk/sites/default/files/site-attachments/Young%20and%20Homeless%202018.pdf

Record Number Of Rough Sleeper Alerts Sent In 24-Hour Period

StreetLink typically sees its use peak during periods of extreme weather, but this recent 24-hour period recorded the highest number of rough sleeper alerts since the launch of StreetLink in December 2012. Members of the public sent over 3,600 alerts to StreetLink – a website, mobile app and phone line that connects people sleeping rough in England and Wales to local services – over the 24-hour period from the morning of Monday 26 to Tuesday 27 February, as the country continues to experience snow and sub-zero temperatures. Read more on the Homeless Link website.

https://www.homeless.org.uk/connect/news/2018/feb/27/record-number-of-rough-sleeper-alerts-sent-in-24-hour-period

Hardship Payments Available Immediately To Homeless JSA Claimants

From October 2017, Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) claimants who are homeless will have immediate access to hardship payments if their benefit is reduced because of a sanction. Universal Credit claimants who are homeless and have received a sanction already have immediate access to hardship payments. However, JSA claimants currently have to wait two weeks. The regulations will cover eligible claimants who are homeless, suffering from a mental impairment, including a mental health condition, and their partners. People who are pregnant, lone parents, and people with long term physical health conditions can already access hardship payments immediately. Read more on Homeless Link.

Investment Fund Launched For Homelessness Sector

Homeless Link, the national membership organisation for homelessness and supported housing agencies, is launching a £4.5m Social Investment Fund for charities and social enterprises across England working to reduce homelessness. The programme is the first of its kind exclusively for the homelessness sector and one of very few sector-specific funds in existence. Homeless Link will invest the money over the next three years, offering homelessness organisations unsecured loans of amounts between £25,000 and £150,000. The aim of the fund is to test and learn where social investment can be most effectively used alongside other forms of funding to improve outcomes. Read more on the Homeless Link website.

Charities Call On Associations To Provide Housing First Accommodation

A homelessness charity has called on social landlords to provide homes for Housing First programmes across the country. Currently only 50% of Housing First projects have access to social housing, according to Homeless Link. Homeless Link has published guidance for social landlords on the purpose of Housing First and how it can benefit landlords. Housing First gives permanent housing to rough sleepers with complex support needs before tackling any problems they may have, such as addiction or mental health issues. Read more on Inside Housing.

How Should A Ban On Letting Fees Work?

The CLG is consulting on how their proposed ban on letting agent fees should be implemented and enforced. Under the proposal, letting agents will no longer be able to charge fees to tenants for a variety of their services, including seeking references, inventory services and contract negotiations. The consultation document suggests that banning letting fees being charged to tenants will incentivise letting agents to compete for landlords’ business. This will lead to lower up-front costs paid by tenants, and greater clarity on the total costs of renting a new home. Read more on the Homeless Link website.

Homelessness Reduction Act Receives Royal Assent

On 27 April, the Homelessness Reduction Bill became an Act of Parliament. The Act places a new duty on local authorities to help prevent the homelessness of all families and single people who are eligible for assistance and threatened with homelessness. Key measures in the Act include:

·         An extension of the period during which an authority should treat someone as threatened with homelessness from 28 to 56 days

·         A new duty to prevent homelessness for all eligible applicants threatened with homelessness, regardless of priority need.

·         A new duty to relieve homelessness for all eligible homeless applicants, regardless of priority need.

·         A new duty on public services to notify a local authority if they come into contact with someone they think may be homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

Read more on Homeless Link.

Homeless Link’s Five Core Principles For The New Supported Housing System

With the Government proposing to implement a new funding system for supported housing from 2019, Homeless Link is launching five key principles that are necessary to secure a sustainable future for these vital services. The five key principles for the new supported housing system are;

·         Provide adequate funding on a sustainable basis so that supported housing is available to everyone who needs it

·         Respond flexibly to the diversity and complexity of people’s individual needs and aspirations

·         Encourage the sector to use its expertise to implement good practice, innovate and develop to meet future demand

·         Support the commissioning of high-quality supported housing schemes that meet the current and future needs of local communities

·         Develop in partnership with supported housing schemes and their residents

Read more on Homeless Link.

Homelessness Reduction Bill Moves To The House Of Lords

The Homelessness Reduction Bill has passed the relevant stages in the House of Commons. It will now move to the House of Lords for its first reading on the 24 February 2017. There have been a number of changes to the Bill since it was introduced, including:

·         Removal of the requirement for local authorities to provide 56-days emergency accommodation for homeless people and rough sleepers with no safe place to stay.

·         Clarification that a local authority’s duty to prevent homelessness begins on receipt of a valid section 21 notice. Local authorities do not need to wait until a court order/bailiff’s warrant has been issued.

·         A limitation on the circumstances in which households can be found to be non-cooperative.

Read more on the Homeless Link website.

40% Of Homeless Young People Could Be Hit By Removal Of Housing Support

Housing Benefit provides a safety net to young people, without which they would not be able to access accommodation. For those at a point of crisis, removal of housing support could also push vital homelessness services out of reach. Young and Homeless 2015, a survey of homelessness service providers and local authority housing departments, indicates that the problem is compounded by wider welfare reforms and lack of affordable and shared housing:

·         95% of homelessness services reported that benefit sanctions have affected young people’s ability to access accommodation.

·         73% reported that the extension of the Shared Accommodation Rate has greatly affected young people’s ability to access accommodation.

·         On average, the time spent in homelessness services was 16 months, almost twice as long as in last year’s survey (8.5 months).

Read more on the Homeless Link website.

Spending Review – Further Clarity On Plans To Limit Rents In The Social Rented Sector To LHA Rates

There are three key things which have been confirmed by Government officials and which will help in understanding what is set out in the Spending Review Blue Book.

·         Although the new rules will apply to affected individuals who sign their tenancy from April 2016 onwards, they will be entitled to full Housing Benefit until April 2018.

·         Supported housing is covered by the new rules

·         The Government are committed to exempting supported housing from the new rules by increasing Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) to local authorities.

As Universal Credit rolls-out Lord Freud has expressed a desire to find a “localised” solution to the funding of supported housing so this announcement needs to be seen in that context. Ministers are still working out the best approach to the funding of rents in supported housing in the context of Housing Benefit being phased-out. Read more on the Homeless Link website.

Charities Call For Review of Homelessness Help

Charities have written to party leaders calling for them to review the help given to single homeless people. The letter, signed by the chief executives of five homelessness charities and umbrella group Homeless Link, calls on the party leaders to treat the review as a ‘priority’, saying single homeless people often receive insufficient support. Under current laws, single homeless people are only entitled to support if they are judged to be in priority need. This, say the charities is leading to homeless people being turned away by councils without receiving support. Read more on Inside Housing.

Homelessness Services Maintaining Essential Help Despite Challenges

A survey of front-line homeless services in England indicates that, despite funding challenges, charities are maintaining essential support for thousands of single adults facing homelessness. The research indicates that 4 in 10 services saw their funding decrease in 2013. Despite this, 8 in 10 of those who had had their funding reduced reported being able to support the same number of clients. Overall, the homeless sector also reported improved outcomes for those they support. 34% of clients are engaged in education or training, up from 23% in 2013. While 14% of clients were supported into paid employment, up from 10% in 2013. Read more on the Homeless Link website.