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Charities call for LHA rates to be unfrozen
Charities are calling on the government to unfreeze Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates in the upcoming Autumn Budget.
In their submissions to the government ahead of the Budget on 22 November, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) and Shelter said the freeze on LHA rates is exacerbating poverty.
JRF said LHA should be “uprated” with local rents “to help the 4.7 million people living in the private rented sector who experience poverty after paying housing costs”.
The charity said LHA should be “reset to ensure it does cover the bottom 30% of local rents and should be uprated in line with local rents”.
It said this is a “more appropriate measure” than Consumer Price Index given the “wide variation” in rents across the UK.
In its submission to the government Shelter also said LHA rates should be “realigned” with the 30th percentile of local rents “due to emerging evidence of unintended consequences of freezing rates on increasing risk of homelessness”.
Shelter also called for a speeding up of compulsory purchase order reform promised in the Conservative Party manifesto this year. This reform should include unlocking finance for housing and infrastructure by making compulsory purchase order compensation reflect the “true market value” of land.
The housing charity is also calling for an end to viability assessments carried out by developers, which are often used to justify lower levels of affordable housing on a site.
Earlier this year, research by the Chartered Institute of Housing revealed the growing gap between rents and LHA rates.
