Mr (Sheffield South East)
(Lab):...People from St Mungo’s came to see me this
morning and they spoke on behalf of the Riverside Foundation, YMCA
and the Salvation Army, which provide around
a quarter of so-called “short-term supported housing” units in this
country. They said that that extension gives an element of
uncertainty to their funding that really causes them major
difficulties. St Mungo’s said that 98% of the accommodation it
provides will be covered by this ring-fenced grant to local
authorities, about which there is absolutely no certainty at
all...
(Waveney) (Con):...We
have heard that providers’ main concern with the proposals is
about short-term housing. Those who have raised worries include
the National Housing Federation, Anchor, Hanover Housing, Housing
and Care 21, Riverside, YMCA, St Mungo’s, the Salvation Army, the Supported Housing
Alliance, Rethink Mental Illness, and Emmaus, which has a
community in Norfolk, near Bungay, which serves my constituency.
The long list tells a story.
Riverside, St Mungo’s, YMCA and the Salvation Army have highlighted three
concerns. First, the ring-fenced local authority block grants do
not provide the same protections and rights for those living in
short-term supported housing as for those living in long-term
supported housing. They regard that as a backward step and a
return to an institutional model. Secondly, they highlight that
the proposed policy is moving in the opposite direction from
universal credit, which seeks to encourage independence, with
claimants managing their own housing costs. Thirdly, they point
out that a discretionary local funding system would not provide
the assurance required by providers seeking either to develop
much-needed new schemes or to invest in the necessary upgrading
and repairing of facilities...
(Blaydon)
(Lab):...As I have said, we know that the local
housing allowance consultation stifled development, and we cannot
afford for that to happen again. Organisations that have been
mentioned in the debate, such as Riverside, the YMCA, St Mungo’s
and the Salvation Army, have clearly pointed out
the problems in briefings that they have circulated. I have no
doubt that they have presented them to the Government as part of
their response. I hope that the Government will listen to their
comments and think again. I know that a number of organisations
have suggested alternative funding models for the future...
(Great Grimsby)
(Lab):...Groups such as Riverside, the YMCA, St Mungo’s
and the Salvation Army—the Salvation Army rarely comes out
against any Government to suggest that things are not going
well—have all said that managing housing costs in a supportive
environment is a vital step in the transition to independent
living for those in short-term supported housing, so removing
this independence could lead to longer stays in supported
housing. Rather than creating a new, complicated and crudely
structured system, surely the Government should look at how the
universal credit system could be improved for those in short-term
supported housing...
Mr Betts:...I come back to the issue of
short-term accommodation. As I said, I had a briefing from St
Mungo’s this morning and a phone call with Riverside, which has
produced a joint briefing with the YMCA and the Salvation Army. The hon. Member for Waveney
rightly (Peter Aldous) read out an even longer list of providers
with concerns—a very long list. The Government have generally
misunderstood or misinterpreted—at this stage I will say
unintentionally—the recommendation about emergency accommodation.
The words in the report were “very short-term accommodation”, but
the Government have applied that to all accommodation of less
than two years, which is not right and not what the
recommendation actually states. The National Housing Federation
has been talking to all its members and puts the matter
succinctly:
“The definition of short-term services in the consultation paper
is very wide and this should be tightened so that it is clear
that the local system covers short-term emergency accommodation
where people stay for a period of weeks rather than
months.”..
To read the whole debate, CLICK
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