February 2011 Policy Round-Up

Welcome to the Homeless Link Monthly Policy Round-up for February 2011. We aim to keep you up-to-date with our latest policy and influencing work, across the sector and at all levels of government.

CONTENTS:

MONITORING THE EXTENT AND IMPACT OF FUNDING CUTS ON HOMELESSNESS
SUPPORTING PEOPLE INFLUENCING DOCUMENT

CONSULTATIONS:

BRIEFINGS:

LONDON DELIVERY BOARD
PREVENTION OF HOMELESSNESS AND DESTITUTION AMONG CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPEANS
HOMELESS PEOPLE AND TUBERCULOSIS
REDUCING REOFFENDING WORKSHOP

MONITORING THE EXTENT AND IMPACT OF FUNDING CUTS ON HOMELESSNESS

Homeless Link continues to contact members and local authorities across England to build a comprehensive picture of changes to their funding and the impact of this on homelessness services. We have now contacted almost 18% of accommodation and day centre services listed on Homeless UK (link). Based on this sample, we can report that in 2011/12 services are expecting a decrease of 26.9% in their funding and overall a decrease of 19.8% of bedspaces against the previous year. Our findings were recently reported in The Guardian.

This project will help support local services to campaign and share best practice in their response to the changes. At the same time, we are lobbying directly to ministers and local authorities to protect services to the most vulnerable, including homeless people. If services are able to tell us about the cuts they are facing in their areas, this would be much appreciated.  Please contact your local regional manager or complete our online survey. 

SUPPORTING PEOPLE INFLUENCING DOCUMENT

Across the country, councils are facing the most challenging financial settlements from central government for years and face difficult decisions about how best to address the needs of local people. Homeless Link has worked with 13 other organisations across health, social care, housing, homelessness, substance misuse and criminal justice to create a Supporting People briefing that presents the key facts with four sets of questions local authorities should ask as they make difficult decisions about services. Please feel free to use this document in any of your local influencing work.

CONSULTATIONS

Homeless Link maintains an overview of the many Green and White Papers, Bills, Amendments and consultations launched by government and respond to any that impact on homeless people and our members. We welcome additional contributions to these responses from members.

WELFARE REFORM BILL

We are currently expecting the Welfare Reform Bill to be laid before parliament in the week commensing 14 February. This is expected to include the plans for Universal Credit, and the housing benefit changes that require primary legislation. Along with other organisations we will be lobbying against the cuts in housing benefit and working for amendments to mitigate the worst effects. Homeless Link will publish a rapid response briefing by 18 February on our Policy Briefings page.

LIBERATING THE NHS: AN INFORMATION REVOLUTION and GREATER CHOICE AND CONTROL

These two concurrent consultations sought views on two themes central to the government's new vision of the NHS. In our response to the Information Revolution, we propose how data collection and access to information can be improved to bring about positive changes for homeless people. In our response to Greater Choice and Control  we suggest that the emphasis on patient choice in the new commissioning structures risks marginalising those individuals who are excluded from mainstream services. We make a number of suggestions about how local services and commissioning structures can ensure homeless people can also participate in this important shift towards greater patient choice.

LOCAL DECISIONS: A FAIRER FUTURE FOR SOCIAL HOUSING

Local Decisions seeks to address the current shortage in social housing and pressures on the system through a number of measures. Of particular interest to Homeless Link are the plans to end lifetime tenancy for new social housing tenants and to end homelessness duty with the offer of an assured shorthold tenancy in the private rented sector (currently those owed a duty who are accommodated in the PRS maintain an option to be housed in appropriate social housing). Homeless Link believes the fundamental problems these solutions are trying to address are issues of supply of decent affordable homes, both in the social rented and private rented sectors.

MANDATORY WORK ACTIVITY REGULATIONS

Homeless Link has submitted a response to the Social Security Advisory Committee’s (SSAC) consultation on the Social Security (Mandatory Work Activity) Regulations 2011. We have a number of concerns about Mandatory Work Activity, including that it is unlikely to be viewed as a supportive intervention and international evidence does not back such programmes as a route into sustained employment. Homeless Link believes a more holistic approach addressing skills, confidence and motivation is likely to be more effective in returning homeless people to the job market. Please download the full response here.

BRIEFINGS

Following recent Bills and Green Papers from the government we have produced briefing papers to summarise the key points of each and the main implications for homeless people and our members.

LOCALISM BILL

The Decentralisation and Localism Bill constitutes by far the most comprehensive and extensive changes to local government in recent memory. The Bill has a wide scope. However it is housing that will undergo the most fundamental reforms and is consequently the area of most importance for Homeless Link and its members. The Localism Bill received a second reading in the House of Commons on the 17th January 2011 and is now at the Committee stage.

BREAKING THE CYCLE: EFFECTIVE PUNISHMENT, REHABILITATION AND SENTENCING OF OFFENDER

The Ministry of Justice launched a Green Paper and consultation following their announcement of a ‘rehabilitation revolution’ for criminal justice earlier in 2010. Homeless Link has published a summary of the paper and consultation  and will be responding to the consultation.

LONDON DELIVERY BOARD

Homeless Link CEO Jenny Edwards presented an update on the end of transitional arrangements for A8s to the London Delivery Board, where she is one of the four voluntary sector organisation representatives working with this multi-agency board to support action to end of rough sleeping by 2012. Homeless Link also presented the No Second Night Out project proposal and an update on the work of the Homelessness Round Table.

PREVENTION OF HOMELESSNESS AND DESTITUTION AMONG CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPEANS

The issue of homelessness and destitution among Central and Eastern Europeans (CEEs) has been a growing problem in England. Homeless Link has commenced a three month scoping project for the Department for Communities and Local Government on the prevention of homelessness and destitution among CEEs and to explore how best to prevent CEE migrant homelessness especially at the point of origin.

EU HOMELESSNESS STRATEGY

In December 2010 a Written Declaration on an EU Homelessness Strategy was adopted by the European Parliament. Homeless Link had lobbied English MEPs on this declaration and is very pleased to see it signed by so many MEPs. See the full text of the Declaration here.

HOMELESS PEOPLE AND TB

Homeless Link was quoted in The Lancet’s paper ‘Tackling tuberculosis in London's homeless population’ which explored the disproportionate prevalence of the disease in homeless people and the services to support them.

REDUCING REOFFENDING WORKSHOP

Homeless Link met with the Home Office to follow up on actions from our participation in the Reducing Reoffending Workshop – Improving Delivery of Reducing Reoffending Approaches Through Sharing Effective Practice. The meeting explored the concept of a cross sector ‘Knowledge Group’ to collect and disseminate effective practice.