Historic Trust Landlords Seek Legal Advice on Right to Buy

Four housing associations established by Victorian philanthropists have taken legal advice on the government’s proposed Right to Buy extension and have ‘not ruled out a challenge’.  Guinness Housing, the Peabody Trust, Affinity Sutton and Southern Housing met recently with top housing lawyers to understand how the policy would affect their historic charitable stock. The four organisations, which together own around 180,000 homes, were all established by philanthropists who invested their fortunes to help house poor residents of London. The organisations have specific governing instruments, with Peabody incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1948 stipulating that it should work solely in London for the relief of poverty. Read more on Inside Housing.

Social Landlord's Survey Reveals Tenants' Issues

One of England's biggest social landlords has revealed the results of a tenant survey that was designed to find out about the issues affecting residents' lives. Affinity Sutton says its findings offer key insights into the challenges tenants are facing. The report reveals that:

·         Internet access amongst tenants has increased from 69% in 2012 to 74% in 2013, still below the national figure of 83%.

·         72% of those in receipt of benefits (other than pensions) were unaware of the introduction of universal credit in 2012. In 2013 the figure fell to 38%.

·         43% of tenants used prepayment meters to pay for energy, the most expensive way to pay for energy, compared to 14% and 16% UK-wide for gas and electricity respectively.

Read more on 24dash.

Social Landlord's Survey Reveals Tenants' Issues

One of England's biggest social landlords has revealed the results of a tenant survey that was designed to find out about the issues affecting residents' lives. Affinity Sutton says its findings offer key insights into the challenges tenants are facing. The report reveals that:

·         Internet access amongst tenants has increased from 69% in 2012 to 74% in 2013, still below the national figure of 83%.

·         72% of those in receipt of benefits (other than pensions) were unaware of the introduction of universal credit in 2012. In 2013 the figure fell to 38%.

·         43% of tenants used prepayment meters to pay for energy, the most expensive way to pay for energy, compared to 14% and 16% UK-wide for gas and electricity respectively.

Read more on 24dash.

New Digital Champions Network for Housing Launched

A new Digital Champions Network for Housing has been launched to help housing providers support their residents to get online and extend their digital skills ahead of the introduction of Universal Credit. Powered by Digital Unite and inspired by Affinity Sutton, one of the largest providers of affordable housing in England, the Digital Champions Network for Housing (DCN4H) is an innovative online platform to create, develop and support Digital Champions in local communities. Building an army of Digital Champions, people who can help others to use the internet, is a sustainable and cost-effective way for housing providers to improve digital skills among their residents and tenants.  Read more on the digitalunite website.

Green Deal Benefits Overstated, Study Claims

The system used to calculate energy savings under the Green Deal, which is critical to the flagship energy efficiency programme’s success, is unreliable and inflates the savings a householder can expect to achieve from retrofit work to their home by as much as 77%, a study has found.  Social housing provider Affinity Sutton, which produced the study, monitored the effect of retrofit work carried out by contractor Keepmoat on 102 homes over the course of a year.  The data, analysed by consultants Verco, Baily Garner and Parity Projects, found that the SAP model, which is used to calculate building performance, on average predicted that tenants would save 77% more on their energy bills than they actually did.  Read more on the Building website.

Digital Drive Could Take Down Universal Credit

Universal credit will fail unless the government can get more people online, a DWP official has warned.  Mike Shakespeare, who works in stakeholder engagement at the department, told a seminar organised by skills body Digital Unite and social landlord Affinity Sutton that digital inclusion work will be vital for the government’s flagship welfare reform policy.  ‘If we can’t get people online it will fail,’ he said. ‘No matter what other problems we encounter with this benefit, and I think we will encounter one or two, if we can’t get people online it will fall at the first hurdle.’  Read more on Inside Housing.

Sector Split over Shapps' Tenant Cashback 'Re-Announcement'

Grant Shapps' "re-announcement" of a scheme to allow social tenants to control their repairs budget has divided opinion in the sector. Home Group is offering its tenants tailored DIY courses at a B&Q training centre and is running three pilot projects called ‘Customer Rewards’. Rosemary Du Rose, executive director of customer service, said: “The people taking part say the Customer Reward Scheme gives them a sense of ownership for the upkeep and maintenance of their homes. There is a real appetite among our customers to take part in our Customer Rewards scheme." However, others in the sector aren’t embracing the tenant cashback scheme. Keith Exford, chief executive of Affinity Sutton, said he thought the scheme was "ill-advised", that it would "cost landlords more" and that it appears to involve jobs that aren't even in the landlord's remit. He added the new tenant cashback scheme would also create opportunities for "fraud and coercion". Read more on 24dash.

Housing Chiefs Slam Shapps’ Allocation Comments

Senior housing figures have hit out at Grant Shapps for controversial comments about social housing tenants. The housing minister recently said: ‘For years the system for social housing has been associated with injustice – where rewards are reaped for those who know how to play the system best. Despite this terrible image a lazy consensus in social housing has ensured that, for an entire generation, no-one has bothered to do anything about it.’ Mr Shapps’ comments angered a number of chief executives, who said there was little evidence for the minister’s claim that there is injustice in the allocations system. Keith Exford, chief executive of 55,000-home Affinity Sutton, said: ‘To make sweeping generalizations about four million people is pretty uncalled for.’ Read more on Inside Housing.

Under-Occupancy Benefit Cuts to Hit Vulnerable Hardest

New research launched by the Housing Futures Network - comprising Affinity Sutton, Gentoo, Places for People and Riverside - has revealed the impact housing benefit changes would have on social housing tenants underoccupying their homes. The network interviewed 452 working-age households in receipt of benefit and living in social housing, which face cuts to their benefit payments from 2013 under Government proposals. In total 670,000 households could be impacted by the cut. The results from the survey showed:
*71% of the tenants surveyed stand to lose up to £15 per week, or up to 10% of their household income and nearly a third (29%) would lose more than £15 a week.
*Whilst a quarter of underoccupiers would try to downsize to a smaller property to escape the benefit cut, the majority do not believe this is an option for them. Over a third (35%) believed they would be likely to end up in rent arrears as a result of the cut.
*43% of underoccupiers are already struggling financially and 83% would find it difficult to find the extra money to pay their rent if their housing benefit were cut.
Download a copy of the report from the Affinity Sutton website.

Benefits Cap Will Hurt Larger Families, Report Says

Larger families will face financial shortfalls under government plans to cap benefits, according to research. A study by Cambridge University academics has said that market-pegged social rents are particularly unaffordable for families with three or more children, and that in some areas a family on benefits would fall foul of the £26,000 benefit cap if renting at 80 per cent of market rate. Under the government’s affordable rent regime developers can charge up to 80 per cent of market rent on new homes built through the Homes and Communities Agency-funded scheme. The research, commissioned by 56,000-home housing association Affinity Sutton, suggests a couple with three or more children would breach the benefit caps in four out of five local authority areas it examined. Download a copy of the report from the Affinity Sutton website.