Written evidence submitted by Professor Katherine Brickell (King’s College London), Dr Mel Nowicki (Oxford Brookes University), and Fraser Curry (King’s College London) (TH0010)

 

Introduction

 

In respect to tackling homelessness, this submission focuses on family homelessness, namely single women with dependent children living in temporary accommodation. 151,630 children in England are homeless and are living in temporary accommodation.

 

This submission calls for Government to:

 

(1)   Launch a formal review of Statutory Guidance on Social Housing Allocations.

(2)   Act on the systemic causes of problem debt, particularly rental arrears, in the prevention of family homelessness.

(3)   Commit greater and more sustainable resources to the prevention of domestic abuse to mitigate against family homelessness.

Evidence description

 

On 17 October 2023, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Households in Temporary Accommodation hosted the launch of our research report ‘The Debt Trap: Women’s Stories of Navigating Family Homelessness and Temporary Accommodation in Greater Manchester’ (Brickell and Nowicki 2023). https://sharedhealthfoundation.org.uk/publications/the-debt-trap-report/

 

Building from 18-months of research with women who have dependent children (once) living in temporary accommodation, the findings in this report, in partnership with the Shared Health Foundation, show (1) how debt is a major factor why families become homeless, (2) it worsens during stays in temporary accommodation, and (3) it then continues to impact on families’ futures even when homelessness ends.

 

Between January and March 2024, King’s College London/Oxford Brookes University undertook new England-wide research. The team analysed the housing allocation policies of all 294 local authorities in England - this figure excludes 21 county councils. It also submitted FOI requests to the 294 local authorities to establish how many households in temporary accommodation nationally have been impacted by housing-related debt rules in their respective housing allocation schemes.

 

In October 2024, Vicky Spratt from i-news reported on some of the England-wide FOI research data which evidences how most local authorities’ housing allocation schemes are, in practice, condemning women and their children to longer stays in temporary accommodation because of housing-related debt rules.

 

‘4,000 homeless families barred from social housing… because they’re in debt’

https://inews.co.uk/news/housing/homeless-families-barred-social-housing-debt-3339582

 

‘My child and I are homeless. But I’m banned from social housing because of debt’ https://inews.co.uk/news/housing/child-homeless-banned-social-housing-debt-3350712

 

*To confirm, this submission has not been published anywhere already.

Findings evidencing the need for Government to act

Launch a formal review of Statutory Guidance on Social Housing Allocations. The flexibility afforded to local authorities in current Guidance has created a ‘postcode lottery’ of housing allocation schemes across England. Indebted homeless women and their children, dependent on local authority, are being adversely impacted by housing-related debt rules in local authorities’ housing allocation schemes which either deprioritise or disqualify applicants from bidding for social housing.

The FOI analysis shows that in December 2023 alone 3,797 households in temporary accommodation in England had been determined by local authorities as ineligible for social housing due to rent arrears. Notably, 43% (1645) of the 3,797 households include at least one child under the age of 18 and 5% (195) of these households include a child who is 2 years old or under. These figures are likely a significant under-estimate given the number of local authorities who were unable to provide data. Debt-related eligibility rules in local authorities’ housing allocation policies are un-scrutinised and Statutory Guidance is not fit for purpose given the harms these rules are having on children.

Stays in temporary accommodation need to be as short and safe as possible given the detrimental physical and mental health impacts faced by children and adults in the immediate and longer term. Yet the research evidence shows that a key barrier to this are the rent-arrears inhibiting a household’s transition out of temporary accommodation and into a secured social housing tenancy. Women and children, including domestic violence victims, can remain in limbo in temporary accommodation until they can reduce or clear their arrears, or in some cases, prove their ‘intent to pay’. In addition to launching a review of Statutory Guidance, the government needs to act on the systemic causes of problem debt, particularly rental arrears, in the prevention of family homelessness.

 

There is a growing risk that more and more families will not only become homeless because of rental arrears (particularly in the private rented sector given high-costs and low-security) but are then caught living in temporary accommodation because of local authorities’ rules on housing-related debts in their housing allocation schemes.

 

The basic notion of looking at these families in terms of financial risk as tenants rather than families at risk who need housing is quite astounding.

         Audience response to our research findings shared at the Shared Health Foundation Family Homelessness Conference, Manchester, June 2024.

The research demonstrates that housing allocation schemes and their treatment of debt urgently warrants review given how prevalent housing-related debt rules are. Most local authorities in England have housing-related debt rules: 88% have an ineligibility policy linked to housing-related debt; 54% have a depriorisation policy linked to housing-related debt; and 70% have an ‘intent to pay’ policy. Some councils are far more punitive than others, and a ‘postcode lottery’ characterises the policy landscape.

 

Our policy analysis shows that especially punitive schemes:

(a)   Have definitions of housing-related debt criteria that include a range of debt types, for example, rent and council tax arrears, service charges, and damage costs.

(b)   Stipulate low levels of debt as impacting housing eligibility or banding position

(c)   Include housing-related debts from different providers, i.e. inclusive of arrears to private landlords.

(d)   Cover debts accrued by the applicant ‘or anyone who usually lives with them, or might reasonably be expected to live with them’

(e)   have ‘intent to pay’ rules that stipulate a high number of consecutive repayments required or the reduction of arrears to a very low value before eligibility is restored or re-banding is actioned

(f)    are limited in the discretion, exemptions, exceptional or mitigating circumstances explicitly stated.

Of significant concern (f) is that although 94% of local authority housing allocation schemes mention domestic abuse, only 17% specifically state that they exempt victims from housing-related debt rules. All local authority housing allocation schemes should explicitly exempt victims of domestic abuse from these rules. This is especially important given families’ entry into homelessness is often the result of domestic abuse, during which women can have experienced being economically controlled, forced to rely on credit for everyday expenses, and in some cases being enrolled into coerced debt. The government needs to commit greater and more sustainable resources to the prevention of domestic abuse to mitigate against family homelessness. Government also needs to provide improved financial and housing support for domestic violence victims to enable them to leave, and then rebuild their lives without the need to return to an abusive relationship because of money.

I think one of the reasons why I always put up with the domestic abuse was, I used to think, ‘How am I going to do it [financially] with the four kids?’ But then, I did get into the position where I thought, enough is enough. I could have been dead; I need to get out of here.’ – Irhaa, 2022, a ‘Debt Trap’ research participant

‘After three years of being on this journey [through homelessness], my mental health was affected, and I had no choice but to move back in with my husband because of the financial situation.Irhaa, 2023

 

 

References

 

Brickell, K., and Nowicki, M. (2023) The Debt Trap: Women’s Stories of Navigating Family Homelessness and Temporary Accommodation in Greater Manchester. King’s College London https://doi.org/10.18742/pub01-150. Available from: https://sharedhealthfoundation.org.uk/publications/the-debt-trap-report/

 

November 2024

3