UK nations should learn from each other
Work to tackle homelessness should combine the best elements of strategies from each UK nation, a study has found.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has completed five reports looking at different social and economic areas to assess the impact of devolution since its start in 1999.
One report specifically looks at housing and homelessness in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Although housing is wholly devolved, there are functions related to it which are not such as welfare benefits.
The report says: ‘The analysis contained in this chapter [on addressing homelessness] suggests the ideal homelessness system would combine the vigour of the English and Welsh preventative measures with the strong statutory safety net available in Scotland.
‘In Scotland and Northern Ireland, it seems that prevention measures do need to be implemented more strenuously if “statutory demand” is to be reduced,’ it states.
‘There is much that could be gained from examining English and Welsh approaches in this regard, and the Scottish concerns about gatekeeping should be assuaged by its robust inspection regime.’
The stock of social sector homes has fallen in all four countries since devolution began. In Scotland supply matched demand during the decade, but it suffered the largest loss of homes through right to buy. The Scottish Government published a housing bill this month which abolishes the right to buy for new social housing tenants.
‘The policies in England, Northern Ireland and Wales have both been more effective in reducing stock losses through the RTB, and in reducing discounts to levels that represent reasonable value to the public sector,’ the report says.
But it adds: ‘Looking forward, the discount structure of the Scottish modernised RTB strikes a better balance in supporting the objective of promoting choice and the option of ownership for tenants.’
The report also notes the ‘failure, to date’ of Glasgow Housing Association to hand over stock to smaller organisations saying this ‘means it has not yet led to the market restructuring that was one of its objectives’.
But the report notes the devolution of housing policy has made a difference to those in low-income households and this potential would increase in the future.
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Readers' comments (1)
Andrew Waugh | 21/01/2010 10:54 am
...or UK nations should learn from other countries of Europe and the world. Why restrict good practice to only the shores of the mainland UK? For example, everyone in Finland has a constitutional right to housing.
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