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From the archive – associations choose not to rebid for supported housing services as recession starts to bite
Inside Housing looks back on the headlines from 10, 20 and 30 years ago this week
30 years ago
The government confirmed there would be a drop in overall expenditure on the coming year’s local authority housing investment programme (HIP).
Although HIP allocations increased to £2.1bn for 1990-91 from £1.1bn the previous year, the loss of spending of accumulated capital receipts under a new financing system was set to result in a drop in total spending from £3.3bn to £3.1bn.
The Association of Metropolitan Authorities warned the cut the following year would be closer to 25%.
Under the new system, the main HIP allocation was made up of £1.3bn of housing annual capital guidelines to individual local authorities and an additional £413m in specific capital grants. The new regime was criticised for failing to redistribute money to authorities with the most severe housing problems.
20 years ago
Tenants’ representatives were angered by housing minister Nick Raynsford’s suggestion that market rents should be introduced into the social housing sector.
Mr Raynsford had previously made the suggestion at a speech to the National Housing Federation, but the Tenants’ and Residents’ Organisations of England (TAROE) said the idea of “identifying choice with markets” was “outdated dogma [that] does not stand up to clear thinking”.
TAROE claimed Mr Raynsford had snubbed its request to join his ‘sounding board’ on rents.
An open letter from TAROE claimed introducing market rents would work against the minister’s desire to see mixed communities. It read: “If social rents in desirable areas rise, those on low incomes will be pushed out. If housing benefits do not cover such rises, those on benefits will be pushed out.”
But Mr Raynsford defended the idea of tenant choice. He told Inside Housing: “Allowing [tenants] a greater say in where they live and whether they can transfer to another home… seems to me to be the best and most logical way forward.”
Picture: Getty
10 years ago
Almost a quarter of supported housing providers were considering not bidding to provide some of their services when their contracts ended.
A National Housing Federation survey of 130 housing associations found that 24% had either already decided not to rebid for services or were considering doing so.
More than three in 10 associations said they had received no increase in contract prices paid by councils in 2007-08, compared to 21% in 2008-09 and nearly 29% in 2009-10.
Councils paid associations 2.2% more in 2007-08 in total and 1.9% more in 2008-09. But these figures were below both wage inflation and increases in Retail Price Index in the same years, presenting service providers with the prospect of losing out as the recession began to bite.
