Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Special offer: Receive 8 issues for just £9.99!
SUBSCRIBE
Housing

Salvation Army warns thousands of hostel bed spaces could be lost

Supported accommodation in jeopardy because of government changes to housing benefit, charity claims

The Salvation Army has warned that government changes to the housing benefit system could force it to close hostels for homeless people.

From 2019, the government plans to fund the nation’s supported accommodation system through housing benefit (or Universal Credit) only up to capped local rates.

And the charity now says the reduced sums will mean a desperate struggle ahead to keep hostels open, leaving thousands of homeless people “at risk” of having to sleep on the streets.

A new report commissioned by the charity revealed 84% of residents at The Salvation Army’s “Lifehouse” hostels would be unable to pay for bed spaces under the benefit cap, rising to 91% of residents by 2020/21.

The new system would place the financial viability of the vast majority of our supported housing services at immediate risk

Mitch Menagh, territorial director of The Salvation Army’s Homelessness Services Unit, conceded the outlook appeared grim.

“We found evidence that the new system would place the financial viability of the vast majority of our supported housing services at immediate risk, jeopardising the homes of thousands of vulnerable people,” he said.

Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

The report by Frontier Economics estimated that the planned reforms would leave, on average, homeless residents in Lifehouses needing an average “top up” of around £78 per week.

Additional funding from local authorities has been difficult to come by because of ongoing budget cuts.

The Salvation Army has argued that the government changes are not appropriate for supported accommodation. Although new housing benefit caps vary from region to region, its services do not vary significantly based on where they are in the UK.

So in Grimsby, for instance, the Local Housing Allowance rate is £75 per week. But the cost to the Salvation Army of providing someone with accommodation costs there is £173 per week.

The charity is urging ministers to delay implementation of a new system until 2022, and use the time to help the sector develop an alternative funding mechanism.

“As part of any new funding system, we would very much like to see the Government maintain this level of stability for our residents, who will have often experienced chaotic lives prior to their stays with us,” said Menagh.

Photo: William Murphy, licensed under Creative Commons

Watch the Pride special collection.

Our LGBTQ+ film playlist offers a new and interesting angle on LGBTQ+ love and struggle – giving an international overview by taking us inside some of the most and least sexually liberated countries in the world.  

Sign Up Now
Advertising helps fund Big Issue’s mission to end poverty

Never miss an issue

Take advantage of our special New Year subscription offer. Subscribe from just £9.99 and never miss an issue.

Recommended for you

View all
Surge in renters losing their homes due to no-fault evictions ahead of ban: 'This is frightening'
Simon from Chatham has faced a section 21 eviction
Renting

Surge in renters losing their homes due to no-fault evictions ahead of ban: 'This is frightening'

Labour to crack down on rogue landlords claiming uncapped housing benefit for horror homes
housing secretary Angela Rayner
Housing benefit

Labour to crack down on rogue landlords claiming uncapped housing benefit for horror homes

Students call for Tripadvisor-style website to shame landlords over damp and mouldy homes
Photo shows Bristol student Livy Naylor's bathroom, which was plagued by mould issues over the last year
RENTING

Students call for Tripadvisor-style website to shame landlords over damp and mouldy homes

Family of toddler who died from damp and mould issue grave warning to Labour over new housing law
Rochdale toddler Awaab Ishak died due to damp and mould in his social housing flat
Social housing

Family of toddler who died from damp and mould issue grave warning to Labour over new housing law

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know
4.

Strike dates 2023: From train drivers to NHS doctors, here are the dates to know