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Morning Briefing: reaction to NHF report on Local Housing Allowance

NHF research on Local Housing Allowance receives some coverage and the rest of the weekend’s housing news

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Picture: Getty
Picture: Getty
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Morning Briefing: 90% of homes unaffordable for homeless families #ukhousing

In the news

The big story this morning is research by the National Housing Federation which shows 90% of homes are unaffordable for claimants of the Local Housing Allowance (LHA).

The research, which we cover here is also getting an airing in The Independent which features comments from Polly Neate, the chief executive of Shelter and a mother who has struggled to find a home.

It follows similar findings released by the Bureau for Investigative Journalism last week. In a nutshell, the problem is that LHA rates have been frozen or cut for years while actual rents have been growing. This has created a situation where you cannot pay the rents with the benefits available – trapping people in homelessness. There is substantial pressure being applied on this point, with charity Crisis campaigning for change.

Elsewhere, several outlets in Scotland including STV cover warnings from the Chartered Institute of Housing that not enough is being done to meet the country’s ambitious target for affordable housing.

Callum Chomczuk, director of CIH Scotland, warns uncertainty regarding future funding is an issue. “We have had no indication of what funding levels will be after next year and there’s a danger that social landlords will simply have to stop building. Skilled staff will leave the sector and we will end up back where we started,” he says.

Also in Scotland, Scottish Housing News covers the latest from the regulator, which says it will focus on standards of Gypsy and Traveller housing in its forthcoming scrutiny plan.

In local news, Manchester Evening News has a report on planned strike action at ForViva among 75 electricians, plumbers, roofers and labourers. The strike is part of a dispute about pay.

Sheffield Council carries news of its own plans for a new ambitious development programme of 3,100 new council homes in the city over the next 10 years.

And The Argus reports on a row in Brighton, where Liberal Democrat councillors have called for homes to be built on an underused golf course in the area.

On social media

On Friday we published a comment piece from Thrive Homes which set out an argument against ’lifetime’ tenancies. The piece provoked a strong reaction on Twitter:

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