Welfare Reform Puts Single People at Risk of Homelessness

Last year's big welfare reforms – the introduction of the bedroom tax, changes to council tax benefit and the localisation of the social fund – are causing severe hardship and putting single people at risk of becoming homeless. Housing professionals tackling homelessness among single people have told researchers at Northumbria University they are preparing themselves for a rise in the number of people losing their homes. Because there is no requirement to measure single homelessness in England, it is extremely hard to find direct evidence of the impact of reform. But welfare reform is leading to a rise in the number of risk factors for homelessness, and our study found these risks were escalating fast in the north east of England. Read more on the Guardian website.