§ Lord Lairdasked Her Majesty's Government:
How accommodation for the homeless in London is monitored; against what specifications; and how the accommodation is funded. [HL5246]
§ Lord RookerPart 7 of the Housing Act 1996 requires local housing authorities to secure suitable accommodation for homeless applicants who are eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and have a priority need for accommodation for particular applicants having regard to the circumstances and needs of the applicant and their household. In determining whether accommodation is suitable for an applicant, authorities must have regard to Parts 9, 10 and 11 of the Housing Act 1996 which deal with slum clearance, overcrowding and houses in multiple occupation, respectively. Applicants have the right to ask for a review of the suitability of accommodation offered to them and, if dissatisfied with the authority's review decision, can appeal to the county court on a point of law.
Where authorities secure accommodation for a homeless applicant under Part 7, they may require the applicant to pay reasonable charges for, or a reasonable contribution towards, the cost of the accommodation. Applicants on a low income may claim housing benefit towards the accommodation costs. The net costs to local authorities of securing accommodation for homeless applicants are funded through general grant. Costs related to the use of authorities' own housing stock which fall within the housing revenue account are supported by housing revenue account subsidy.
46WAThe annual general grant for English local authorities has already been increased by £8 million in respect of legislative changes that will be introduced by the Homelessness Act 2002 and the proposed Homelessness (Priority Need for Accommodation) (England) 2002. A further £10 million will be allocated to English authorities this year to help them implement the priority need order.
In March this year, a £35 million programme was launched to help local authorities ensure that by March 2004 no homeless family with children is in B&B other than in an emergency, and even then for no more than six weeks. Statutory guidance issued by my department makes it clear that if authorities do have to use bed-and-breakfast accommodation they should ensure that the accommodation meets statutory standards for houses in multiple occupation. My department is currently consulting with specialist bodies on draft proposals for minimum acceptable standards of B&B accommodation in advance of a wider consultation in due course.
In London, over 450 hostels provide around 19,600 beds for single homeless people. Hostels are funded in several ways. These include rent/housing benefit, supported housing management grant (SHMG) which is provided through the Housing Corporation revenue grant and other funding such as Section 180 grant funding.
As part of a drive to improve the information available to policy makers and service providers, the Homelessness Directorate set up within my department in March 2002 will investigate the range of accommodation available to homeless people. This will involve defining, and establishing, the number of different sorts of accommodation.
Supporting People and the Homelessness Act 2002 requirement for local authorities to conduct homelessness reviews will also improve the information collected on hostel use. In addition, to ensure that best practice is replicated throughout the country we are exploring the feasibility of ensuring that hostels are inspected in a structured way, by either the voluntary or statutory sectors.