Written evidence submitted by Yenaa Housing Ltd [EXA 056]

Introduction

Yenaa housing is an Exempt supported accommodation provider based in Birmingham in the west Midlands. We currently operate 68 beds across 8 sites.  This is accommodation based on single individual claims per room and the accommodation has the scope of shared houses, shared houses with ensuite facilities and two-bedroom apartments with shared facilities. Approximately 50% of our current provision are new build properties.

We can accommodate and support a range of residents, who have been assessed as being homeless or at risk of homelessness. Along with this Our strategic objective is to provide temporary Supported accommodation to individuals whose needs are not adequately meet by commercially available rental properties, due to:

• Lack of sufficient income to afford commercial rent.
• Unable to work or maintain income due to illness
• Have dependency issues
• Have emotional & Mental well-being issue, which excludes them from the job and housing market
• Are homeless or at risk of being homeless
• Are in receipt of benefits
• They are a care leaver aged 18+
• Prison leavers
• Refuges
• Individuals at risk of Domestic violence

This is temporary Supported Accommodation and provides a stepping-stone for our tenants into more permanent accommodation. The support we provide allows us to explore community resources to enable our residents to develop their training, education, emotional and mental health well-being and community engagement. We want to provide stability and provide support with highly aspirational outcomes. We Utalise specialist support agencies to support individual tenants and their needs and have a number of community-based resources, which provide a variety of pathways for residents to engage with.

One of the most significant barriers to the successful completion of a resident’s time in supported provision is the lack of viable housing stock for individuals to move on to. There are considerable waiting lists for all types of housing and due to this some residents find themselves stuck in supported accommodation. They are unable to access appropriate accommodation via hosing associations or local Authorities. Coupled with this their Benefit allocation only enables them to work for a specific number of hours per week. Due to this the vast majority of tenants are not able to save for the high deposits and provide the guarantors that all private landlords will require. Whilst the recent change to the tapper for universal credit was changed to 55p for every pound earnt. As a group they are experiencing such excessive and high level of taxation considering their ability to earn is hindered so extensively.

Referral pathways:

We are currently working alongside a number of partner agencies including Probation services, Mental Health & Health services, Social Services, Housing providers, Housing associations and direct self-referrals. Each individual referral undergoes a screening and matching assessment to consider all the relevant information and whether we are able to offer an individual the correct environment and level of support to meet their needs. The assessment seeks to look at compatibility with other residents and any potential trigger points. This reduces the risk of anti-social behaviour and decreases the risk of the placement failing. It is the corner stone of our individual model and has reduced incidents of anti-social behaviour in the last 2 years by 99%.

It has also helped us identify the potential risk to and from a potential resident. It enables our risk assessments to be dynamic and has in many cases highlighted the need for a potential resident to seek out a higher level of commissioned care and support via social care or Mental Health. Historically due to a lack of base-line assessment and knowledge there were high levels of individual residents missed placed either due to compatibility issues or they required a higher level of support and care. This in turn has had a significant impact on levels of anti-social behaviour within the provision and community.

Support and supervision Model

The variety of presentations we experience from residents can vary from:

• Various forms of Mental Health issues: Anxiety, Depression, loss, self-harm, Early childhood trauma, PTSD, Autistic Spectrum Disorders
• Alcohol and substance dependency
• Relationship breakdowns
• Exploitation
• Trafficking
• Aggression and violence
• Social Isolation
• Safeguarding issues
• Loneliness
• Self-worth and self-esteem issues
• Faith based issues

This list is not exhaustive and required us to look for a model of support that would provide the best level of outcomes and guidance. Our model is based on a community pathway and trauma recovery model. We feel having knowledge of an individual’s residents’ journey will enable us to work with them and identify the correct recovery pathway out of their current situation. We have to manage our intervention carefully due to the limited time constraints placed around the idea of ‘floating support’. We have developed a number of resources within the communities around our properties and we Utalise these to provide the specialist support required to assist our residents to move on. The vast majority of our residents seek safety and security. We strive to provide them equality with their peer group and address some of the issues that have hindered their decision making.

One factor, which does hinder the support process is that there is no common assessment framework, which identifies the level of support required by the individual resident. At present regardless of need all residents must meet a criteria of 5 support needs to be offered accommodation. This is an arbitrary number and is not backed by any regulatory guidance or core assessment. It does not take account of an individual’s true need. As a result, all residents must attend support session. In our experience some tenants are very independent and capable and require minimal support. Others with significant issues require a much higher level of support. If we had an assessment, which identified need our resources would be better allocated and those with the greatest need would be provided with the higher support.

One of the challenges is balancing the needs of the individual against the expectations of Birmingham City as an authority. Much of the recent focus has been on the Housing associations who act as the third-party negotiators between Authorities. In our opinion there has still been little engagement with the actual housing providers, who have the key relationship with residents and understand the voice of the residents. We are working day-to day in our communities, and we feel we have a crucial role in developing this sector. For example, we have been working closely with our local Business Development District to tap into their resources to link residents with job opportunity and the skills provided by individual members of the BID. This breaks down community barriers.

Financial Model

At present we are operating through 2 Registered Social Landlords in Birmingham. We have had to do this as approaching our Authority directly is a very difficult and drawn-out process. There is no guarantee of success. So, taking that into account we feel it is worth looking at the current model within the supported exempt accommodation sector.

Our model differs from other providers in that we do not operate a lease-based model. We have our own development business, which works exclusively for the benefit of Yenaa Housing. We do not enter into any individual lease agreements with others.

If we look at a like for like room and the rental costs for one of the areas, we operate in within Birmingham the B21 postcode. At present and utilising current data.

Average £140 PW then with service charge of £45 PW this would require a 4 X PW deposit £560

Current finance model in Supported accommodation via RSL is average at the high end at 218 PW paid to RSL. Fees of 13 % plus extra hidden costs for health & Safety inspections, Safety certification and Audit add an additional 5% cost. So, an average total of 16%

This leaves an operating cost at £ 183.12 PW. Given the level of complexity of resident we are being asked to deal with the housing costs can be considerably higher.

• We have significantly higher administration costs due to the turnover of residents
• Current support is costed at £9 per hour, which does not cover anywhere near the employment costs.
• We are under 12 week rounds of scrutiny with Housing associations for Health & Safety, building certification and auditing commitments.
• We are at risk of Housing Benefits being suspended at any time.
• We deal with one of the most complex, vulnerable, and dangerous segments of the community. This class of tenants will struggle to get a room in the commercial market
• We run it as a business with admin cost, corporation tax, and three-time insurance price.
• Our insurance for the building, employer liability, and public liability is three times higher than a normal HMO as clients come with various criminal records.
• As we don't take deposits and it is short-term accommodation, our repairs, maintenance, and furniture replacement is double standard HMO in the commercial market.

• Given the very aggressive stance being adopted by Birmingham City Council in their treatment of providers and the additional cost being added by some RSL’s We don't think this sector will be financially viable for profit-making companies in the future. These 18k residents living in Birmingham in exempt accommodation will have to be rehoused somewhere, as the local authority have a duty to provide accommodation.

Conclusion& recommendations

At Yenaa we have a number of residents who are all very safe and happy in their accommodation. Our dedicated team provides the support and resources required to help them move forward. We have a number of testimonies from our residents on our website at

https://www.yenaa.co.uk/testimonials/   Please review this link as we can’t upload videos.

We gather residents feedback on a number of aspects of our service delivery and it is always very positive. There is some really good work being delivered and this is backed up by sound theoretical models and frameworks. There are a number of very skilled practitioners within the sector, whose voices need to be heard.

We strongly feel we have a significant role to play in the formulation of the sector of supported accommodation. There are two distinct areas for consideration. Firstly, the financial model and costings. Secondly, clarification on what constitute support. Both aspects then must then be reconciled under one potential regulatory system or body.

Recommendations:

• Regulator of social Housing & DWP to take responsibility via local Authorities for the accreditation and Quality of provision via a charter for all providers entering or currently in the sectors.
• Target and eliminate housing providers, managing agents and RSL’s who are not providing the correct standards expected by the Charter. In turn this will shrink the market.
• Provide peer on peer review and mentoring for new and existing providers.
• A sector wide steering group, represented by all partners and residents within the supported accommodation network.
• Local Authorities to engage directly with housing providers and develop their own commission-based procurement process and housing costs locally. Consider cutting out the RSL and eliminate their fees.
• Development of a common assessment framework, screening & matching and referencing system for residents. Enabling providers to check on suitability of a potential resident.
• Assess need on an individual basis and allocate resources appropriately.
• Address the difficulties experienced for tenants to move out of supported accommodation. The Local Authority Housing department acting as a time limited guarantor and Housing benefits contributing to deposits.
• Address the public, political and community views held regarding Supported accommodation. We are not all the same.

Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to this process. We would like to offer our involvement in any future discussion.

January 2022