Appendix 3: Social Housing Rents (Exceptions and Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2017 (SI 2017/91)
Additional Information from the Department for Communities and Local Government
Q1: Did the evidence review report in spring 2016? Were its findings relevant to the latest Regulations (1% rent reduction policy to exempt refuges, but to apply the policy to the rest of the sector)?
A1: The Supported Accommodation Evidence Review was published on 21 November alongside the joint Department for Communities and Local Government and Department for Work and Pensions consultation on funding for supported housing.
The review was carried out by IPSOS MORI, Imogen Blood Associates and the Housing & Support Partnership and provided evidence on the scope scale and cost of the supported housing sector and early findings informed the Government’s Written Ministerial Statement, wider announcement on 15 September, regarding future funding for the sector.
Findings from the evidence review were not directly relevant to the decision to extend the existing exception from the rent reduction policy for fully mutual/cooperatives housing associations, almshouses, Community Land Trusts and domestic violence refuges.
Although beyond the original scope of the research, the evidence review provided some anecdotal views from the supported housing sector specifically on the potential implications of both the rent reduction and Local Housing Allowance rates policy on the whole of the supported housing sector (page 85 of the review). These findings suggested that the rent reduction policy and the proposed introduction of the Local Housing Allowance rates policy were both of concern across the supported housing sector, but that the Local Housing Allowance rates policy in particular, potentially risked the viability of some supported housing. In the 15 September policy announcement, the Government confirmed that the Local Housing Allowance rates policy would be deferred for the whole of the supported housing sector until 2019/20 at which point a new funding model will be introduced which will ensure the sector continues to be funded at the same level it would have otherwise been in 2019/20, taking into account the effect of Government policy on social sector rents, which as planned, would apply to the supported housing sector, but with the exception of domestic violence refuges.
Supported Accommodation Review (21/11/16)
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supported-accommodation-review
Funding for supported housing consultation (21/11/16)
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/funding-for-supported-housing
Written Ministerial Statement - Supported Housing (15/09/16)
Q2: Could you explain why domestic abuse refuge representative bodies support the flexibility to set initial rents at a higher level and to increase rents by CPI + 1% per annum?
A2: Domestic Abuse Refuge representative bodies such as Women Aid support the flexibility to set initial rents at a higher level and to increase rent by CPI + 1% per year to ensure that refuges remain financially sustainable. Refuges work to very tight margins, with uncertain funding resources and rely on housing benefit to cover, on average, 89% of their weekly housing costs–the money needed to fund buildings, maintenance and essential services. Without this flexibility, Women’s Aid warned that two thirds of refuges would be forced to close, and 87% would not have been able to provide the same level of service provision to protect women and children survivors of domestic abuse.
15 February 2017