I welcome Theresa May’s announcement that the Government will not apply the Local Housing Allowance cap to supported housing. I had been urging the Government to rethink these plans especially as I am a member of the joint Select Committee which highlighted the problem. If the proposals had gone ahead it would have once again massively disadvantaged hostels, supported and sheltered housing in the North and favoured those in London and the South East. As accommodation costs are higher in supported housing, because of the extra services and communal spaces, it would have left residents facing big shortfalls. This, in turn, would have meant many residents would have been worried about whether they could afford to stay and would have seriously limited the development of new housing projects and put current ones in a perilous financial position. I congratulate the Government for, once again, listening and withdrawing a policy when its potential pitfalls have been pointed out.
Supported housing is valued deeply by those who live in it and contributes enormously to their independence and wellbeing. The Government’s proposals had caused considerable concern and I welcome the Prime Minister’s announcement today that the Government will not apply the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rate to Supported Housing. I commend the work of the Committees and of my colleague, Richard Graham MP, who co-chaired the joint inquiry on this issue.
Our joint report told the Government that the LHA rate was “an inappropriate starting point for a new funding mechanism” and a serious threat to the future viability of the sector. I look forward to seeing the full details of the Government’s new funding proposals when they are published next Tuesday.”