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Housing benefit cuts will cause homes crisis, Citizens Advice warns

10 September 2010

Proposed cuts to housing benefit will result in higher levels of poverty, debt, rent arrears and homelessness and should be delayed, national charity Citizens Advice says today.

The warning comes in evidence submitted to the Department of Work and Pensions’ Social Security Advisory Committee, whose consultation on the changes ends today (Friday 10 September). The committee is expected to publish its recommendations to government in the late autumn.

Cuts announced by government include a cap on housing benefit payments from April next year.*

Citizens Advice strongly opposes the cuts, but says that if they do go ahead, the government must take steps to cushion the impact and smooth the transition for those households affected. It calls for a delay in introducing the new cap until October 2011, or at the very least only applying it to new claims from April, in order to ensure that people locked into existing tenancy agreements do not find themselves suddenly trapped with an unaffordable rent, and to give them time to find somewhere else to live.

The charity is particularly concerned about the impact on housing and homelessness in London, where housing pressures are already extreme. When the new caps are imposed, 93% of rents in Central London will be unaffordable for private tenants reliant on housing benefit. Over 18,000 households will be affected, with average shortfalls between their housing benefit and rent of £81 a week.

Last year (2009/10) Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales dealt with over 222,000 enquiries relating to housing benefit. Parent body Citizens Advice says it is clear from this advice work that housing benefit plays a crucial role in enabling people on low incomes to sustain their housing, yet decisions on cuts have been made without considering the housing implications.

Citizens Advice says it is highly unsatisfactory that the decision to make benefit cuts on this scale, affecting huge numbers of low income and vulnerable households, was taken without any prior assessment of the possible impact on rent levels, on landlords’ willingness to let to claimants, or on the standard of property that will be available within the new housing benefit rates.

The charity also expresses concern that although the government acknowledges there will be negative consequences - for example on homelessness, overcrowding, and child poverty - no proposals have been put forward for mitigating these effects.

Citizens Advice Chief Executive Gillian Guy said:

“We are extremely concerned at the potential impact of the cuts to housing benefit on people’s ability to pay their rents and avoid rent arrears and homelessness. Tens of thousands of private tenants will find their rent is unaffordable and will therefore need to move at short notice to areas with lower rents as a result of the proposed cuts. For many, such a forced move will be highly disruptive and stressful as well as putting additional strain on very limited budgets. It will be particularly hard for families, whose options could be limited to moving somewhere smaller with the risk of overcrowding, or moving to a cheaper area further away, breaking vital links with jobs, schools, healthcare and family support. Those unable to find affordable alternative accommodation at rents within the new housing benefit limits will be at real risk of homelessness.”




* The Chancellor announced a range of Housing Benefit related measures in the Emergency Budget on 22 June. For those measures proposed for 2011, the Secretary of State intends to amend existing legislation in order to bring these into effect. These proposals are:

From April 2011:

From October 2011:

Notes to editors:

  1. The Citizens Advice service comprises a network of local bureaux, all of which are independent charities, and national charity Citizens Advice. Together we help people resolve their money, legal and other problems by providing information and advice and by influencing policymakers. For more information in England and Wales see www.citizensadvice.org.uk
  2. The advice provided by the Citizens Advice service is free, independent, confidential, and impartial, and available to everyone regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age or nationality. For online advice and information see New windowwww.adviceguide.org.uk
  3. Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales advised 2.1 million clients on 7.1 million problems from April 2009 to March 2010, an 18% increase on the previous year. For full 2009/2010 service statistics see: www.citizensadvice.org.uk/press_20100517
  4. Out of 22 national charities, the Citizens Advice service is ranked by the general public as being the most helpful, approachable, professional, informative, effective / cost effective, reputable and accountable. (nfpSynergy’s Brand Attributes survey, May 2010).
  5. Most Citizens Advice service staff are trained volunteers, working at around 3,300 service outlets across England and Wales.
  6. Volunteer hotline 08451 264264 (local rate)