Homelessness crisis reaches new high as 19,000 private renters forced onto streets in just one year

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/homelessness-crisis-new-high-19000-private-renters-forced-onto-streetsyear-a7335756.html
‘Figures are a heartbreaking reminder of the devastating impact our drastic shortage of affordable homes is having,’ says chief executive of Shelter
Harriet Agerholm @HarrietAgerholm 16 hours  ago

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Just under 43,000 families made homeless across all sectors in the last year Getty
The number of private renters becoming homeless is at its highest level in England since records began.
Almost 19,000 households became homeless after being evicted by a private landlord in the last year, a 200 per cent increase compared to five years ago and the highest number on record.
Across all the sectors, just under 43,000 families were accepted as homeless by their local council in the last year � a rise of 35 per cent from five years ago.
According to official statistics released by the Department for Communities and Local Government, the end of an assured shorthold tenancy – the most common form of rental agreement – has become an increasingly common reason for becoming homeless.
The spiralling costs of housing coupled with cuts to welfare spending have been blamed for the steep rise.
English councils dealt with 200,930 requests for help from people on the verge of homelessness in the last year.
Jon Sparkes, head of homelessness charity, Crisis, said: �We need a change in the law to prevent more people from losing their home and to make sure all homeless people can get the help they need, while councils need the funding to make this work.
�Prevention has already been shown to work in Wales, where it has dramatically reduced the need for people to be re-housed.�
A bill put forward by Bill Blackman MP to address the problem will have it’s second reading in late October  It proposes a new duty for all local authorities to take action on behalf of anyone threatened with homelessness within the next 56 days, regardless of what their priority status is.
Responding to the figures, chief executive of homelessness organisation Shelter Campbell Robb said: �These figures are a heartbreaking reminder of the devastating impact our drastic shortage of affordable homes is having.
�Every day we hear from families struggling to keep their heads above water when faced with the double blow of welfare cuts and expensive, unstable private renting, with far too many ultimately losing the battle to stay in their home.
�On top of this, stripped back budgets and a drought of affordable homes are making it increasingly difficult for overburdened councils to find homeless families anywhere suitable to live.”

Simon Robb for Metro.co.uk Thursday 22 Sep 2016 2:21 pm
http://metro.co.uk/2016/09/22/neighbours-form-human-chain-around-a-mums-house-to-stop-eviction-6145004/
A woman facing ‘revenge eviction’ has been given a lifeline after her neighbours gathered to form a human chain around her home.
Nimo Abdullahi, 39, claimed her landlord tried to kick her and her five children out of their home after she complained about the rising damp.

But neighbours and campaigners turned out in force to stop bailiffs from forcing the family out of their home in Easton, Bristol.
A newlywed couple living opposite even cut up their wedding cake for all the protesters.
When the bailiffs arrived on Tuesday morning, they were unable to get past the 30 protesters who stood strong.
Nimo claimed the landlord tried to evict them numerous times before and even threatened to get the police to do the job.
She said: ‘It has a big problem with damp. This is bad for us, because my children have asthma and it is not a good place.
‘Until recently, the carpets everywhere were very old and dirty and we would ask the landlord to improve things, but he was difficult.
‘Many times I asked him, and a lot of times he would threaten us.’
Neighbour Jenny Ross said: ‘We don’t want people in our community treated like this. It’s a revenge eviction and people deserve decent rented accommodations.’
Another neighbour, Kirsten Parton, added: ‘I’m here because of the way she’s been treated by her landlord, it is simply not on.
‘She and her family are part of the community and have been here for quite some time.’
Nimo is being helped by Acorn, a local grass roots movement which fights for renters’ rights.
Efforts have been made to get in touch with the landlord.

http://www.politics.co.uk/news/2016/09/15/homeless-charities-complicit-in-rough-sleeper-deportations

“Homeless individuals are sitting ducks for immigration enforcement”
By Natalie BloomerThursday, 15 September 2016

Two well-known homeless charities are accused of being ‘complicit’ with the deportation of foreign rough sleepers from the UK, Politics.co.uk can reveal.

Leading homelessness charities St Mungo’s and Thames Reach worked on a scheme to tackle ‘entrenched’ rough sleeping in London, which also involved immigration enforcement teams removing people from the country against their will.

Documents released by the Greater London Authority suggest the charities supported the ‘administrative removal’ of some foreign rough sleepers.

Administrative removals are deportations carried out against people who may have breached the conditions of their stay in the UK. Under government guidance announced this year, just being seen sleeping rough is considered a breach.

Campaigners today hit out at the charities for being ‘complicit’ with deportations.

“Homeless individuals are sitting ducks for immigration enforcement,” Rita Chadha, the chief executive of Ramfel, a refugee and migrant group, said.

“The fact that some homelessness charities can be complicit in such work is to our collective shame.

“People need to start questioning where their donations to some homeless charities are going. Are they really helping individuals or are they subsidising state-sanctioned enforcement?”

Former mayor of London Boris Johnson asked the homeless charities to work on a ‘payment by results’ basis, in order to help fulfil his promise to eradicate rough sleeping from London’s streets.

GLA documents reveal that in 2012, Thames Reach and St Mungo’s were commissioned to provide a number of services to around 800 so-called “entrenched” rough sleepers. But the programme, which was called a Social Impact Bond (SIB), also aimed to “reconnect” EU nationals with their home countries.

“Reconnections” are usually described as voluntary help for people who want to return home. But an update on the SIB in 2015, suggests they can also refer to forced removals from the country.

In the update, the GLA told the Investment & Performance Board (IPB) that “the number of reconnections abroad had fallen short of the providers’ targets” but that “with ten SIB clients having recently been referred to the Home Office for administrative removal, the number of reconnections in this year may well exceed the providers’ in-year target”.

The SIB is just one of several GLA projects to tackle rough sleeping in the capital. In the authority’s commissioning framework they make it clear that any charity wanting to provide their rough sleeping services would be expected to cooperate with immigration officials to remove EU nationals.

The framework comments on their “notable success” in working with Immigration Compliance Enforcement (ICE) teams, who liaise with “local authorities, service providers and the police” to deal with EU nationals who are neither employed or self-sufficient.

The document goes on to say: “This has involved testing a process of administrative removal for those individuals overstaying or not exercising their treaty rights. The GLA has supported this response and will continue to support similar initiatives in the future.”

Charities co-operated with scheme to remove ‘entrenched’ rough sleepers

Thames Reach’s contract to carry out the GLA’s ‘reconnection’ work ended earlier this year. However, in a response to the Communities and Local Government (CLG) Committee homeless inquiry they confirmed they support the practice of forced removals. They said:

“For different reasons there is a reluctance to take up this voluntary reconnection and for some, inevitably, an administrative removal carried out by the Immigration Compliance and Enforcement (ICE) service becomes necessary.”

They also suggested that a solution to reduce the flow of migrants to the UK who end up sleeping rough would be to increase “enforcement by ICE teams” where EU treaty obligations are not met.

Ramfel has raised concerns about the GLA’s reliance on charities to assess immigration cases and questioned whether their staff have the necessary skills and experience to provide accurate advice.

“We have seen a number of individuals who have felt pressured to leave the UK or have been told they have no alternative but to return home, when actually there are a variety of options available to them to remain here,” Chadha said.

St Mungo’s confirmed that they had worked with other agencies to ‘reconnect’ foreign rough sleepers. The director of the Street Outreach Service at St Mungo’s, Petra Salva said:

“St Mungo’s does not remove rough sleepers who are not exercising their treaty rights. Our work is with vulnerable people sleeping rough. We support people to move away from the streets, have a place to call home and to rebuild their lives. We consider the person and the best route off the street for them. That can involve working with other agencies, including reconnection within other London boroughs, to other parts of the UK or overseas.”

When contacted by Politics.co.uk, Thames Reach said that they were only currently engaged with assisting voluntary reconnections. A spokesperson said:

“We know that rough sleeping is dangerous and can kill.  At least 83 verified rough sleepers died last year in London. Where it is needed, we make sure that vulnerable people get the support they need to make a successful return home, and get the help they need when they get there.”

By Hannah Richardson BBC News social affairs reporter

Nearly half of all housing benefit claimants are now in work

Private landlords in the UK received twice as much in housing benefit last year – £9.3bn – as they did a decade ago, a report says.

The National Housing Federation (NHF) study said the increase was due to a big rise in the number of private tenants claiming housing benefit.

The NHF said this particular group of people had grown by 42% since 2008.

In 2006, some £4.6bn in housing benefit was paid to private landlords, a figure which had more than doubled by 2015.

NHF chief executive David Orr said: “It is madness to spend £9bn of taxpayers’ money lining the pockets of private landlords rather than investing in affordable homes.”

“The lack of affordable housing available means that a wider group of people need housing benefit,” he added.

Working poor

Had these housing benefit claimants been living in social housing instead of renting from private landlords, taxpayers would have saved huge sums of money over seven years, the NHF report estimated.

It said that taxpayers paid £1,000 more per year, per family renting in the private rented sector, than they did for those in social housing.

This amounted to an average of £2.2bn a year extra being handed over to private landlords, at a cumulative additional cost of £15.6bn over the past seven years, the NHF analysis says.

If this extra housing benefit bill for just one year had been spent on creating new affordable housing, the NHF added, then nearly 50,000 new homes could have been built.

The report also points out that a larger proportion of families claiming housing benefit in the private rented sector are now in work.

“Today, nearly half (47%) of all families claiming housing benefit in the private rented sector are in work – this is nearly double the proportion it was six years ago (26%),” the NHF said.

‘Tenants failed’

A government spokesman said it had been taking action to bring the housing benefit bill under control.

He said: “Since 2012 the amount going to private sector landlords has actually been falling – something which the National Housing Federation fails to recognise.”

“We are also committed to building the homes this country needs and investing £8bn to build 400,000 more affordable homes.”

Chris Norris, head of policy at the National Landlords Association, said the private rented sector was responding to the increasing demand for homes from a growing proportion of tenants who are being failed by the social housing sector and housing associations.

“The NHF is clearly still reeling from the news that its members have been ordered by government to reduce spending over the next four years, so it comes as no surprise that they are looking to shift the emphasis and point the finger elsewhere,” he said.

“However, the private rented sector plays a pivotal role in providing much-needed homes for tenants so there seems no real purpose in the NHF taking a cheap shot at landlords for what is a failure on behalf of successive governments to adequately allocate its housing budget and to incentivise the building of new homes.”

Tony Gosling Jun 12, 2012 At last making some real headway with this vexing question of who owns the shares of the Bank of England. This ain’t nationalisation ma’am!

2 Extracts from

WAR OF THE WINDSORS A Century of Unconstitutional Monarchy

By Lynne Picnett, Clive Prince and Stephen Prior With additional historical research by Robert Brydon Mainstream publishing – 2003 ISBN: 1 84018 766 2

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2012/06/496942.html

http://www.911forum.org.uk/board/viewtopic.php?p=161285#161285

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Empty Homes in England

04 March 2016

Many cities across Britain are becoming more and more like ghost towns as absentee owners push up property prices but fail to contribute to the local economy.
Many cities across Britain are becoming more and more like ghost towns as absentee owners push up property prices but fail to contribute to the local economy.

There are multiple reasons as to why properties are left empty on a long term basis with the top four being:

• Landlords are unable to afford repairs for it to be suitable for a new tenant
• It’s an inherited property and the new owners are unsure what to do with it
• Renovations are taking a long time or they have stalled
• The owners are waiting for the market value to increase before a sale

Unsurprisingly, more than three quarters of British adults (78%) think that the Government should place a higher priority on tackling empty homes.

In addition, with cuts to housing benefit, welfare reform and a huge lack of affordable housing, homelessness is a crisis that has seen a 26% rise in the last four years. Statistics have shown that if empty homes were put back into use, there would be the equivalent of eleven homes per person registered as being accepted as homeless and in priority need.

Whilst public perception and the vast numbers of homelessness and empty homes instill a sense of urgency, official statistics show that numbers of empty homes have been consistently decreasing over the last 10 years. There’s still much to be done; however, it’s positive that the cities and community groups are making a stronger effort to reduce both numbers.

We are on hand to support new owners with selling their homes in a swift and effective manner to get properties back on the market and inhabited as soon as possible.

To show further support to the campaign to prevent homelessness and support those without homes, we have made a donation to “Homes from Empty Homes”.

For further information support regarding empty homes in England, you can visit:

• Empty Homes Toolkit
• Empty Homes Network
• Homes from Empty Homes

For further information about homelessness in England, you can find out more at:

• Crisis
• Shelter

You can download our data visualisations as a PDF by clicking here

08 August 2016 – Sam Gelder

http://www.hackneygazette.co.uk/news/crime-court/passing_clouds_eviction_supporters_of_dalston_music_venue_protest_outside_court_1_4648379

Passing Clouds supporters outside court. (Picture: Polly Hancock).

Eleanor Wilson (right) heading into court for the hearing. (Picture: Polly Hancock).

Anyone who’s walked around Hackney in the last few months will have seen signs in shop windows reading “Passing Clouds forever”.

Passing Clouds is an independent music venue in Dalston, one of the few left in the whole of London. More than 5,000 musicians from 100 countries have performed there in the last 10 years and it’s got huge support from the community, politicians and the music industry.

Jack Yglesias a musician, artist was showing his support. (Picture: Polly Hancock).

On Friday morning, that support was out in force at Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court, where the landlord, Landhold Developments, was making an application to evict Passing Clouds from the building.

Spirits were high as dozens of protesters lined Gee Street and director Eleanor Wilson was given a rousing reception on her arrival.

Passing Clouds staff Freddy Burls and Sophia Lysaczenko. (Picture: Polly Hancock).

There were people of all ages outside as musicians strummed away and others tried their best to create a genuine carnival atmosphere complete with face painting and fancy dress.

The only thing missing was records playing as people danced (and hula-hooped) in the street in front of bemused builders.

The group celebrate after their show of people power. Picture: www.borisaustin.com

Some then went into court for the hearing, which was swiftly adjourned until Friday.

Sadly, this is just the latest development in a long legal battle between the two parties that started with the “secret sale” of the venue in November – after management had spent years trying to buy it from the previous landlord.

The scheduled events went ahead as planned after the venue was reclaimed. Picture: www.borisaustin.com

A lease extension was initially granted until August, but on the night of June 16 bailiffs were sent in to change the locks.

What they didn’t count on was 200 people, mostly musicians, arriving within hours of the discovery to force them back out in a defiant act of people power.

The building has been occupied 24/7 ever since by the Passing Clouds community, who are desperate to stop it going the way of so many other independent music venues. A three-month, 10th birthday celebration featuring concerts from Mercury-prize winning artist Speech Debelle, Lee Scratch Perry, and Maxi Jazz of Faithless has carried on as planned.

Gary McKenzie is the private hire boss at Passing Clouds. Speaking outside the court, he told the Gazette: “It [the venue] is so important for the community and for world music.

“Venues like ours are what attracts people to the area. No one would have wanted to come if the culture wasn’t here in the first place and now they want to destroy it for flats. It’s not just us either, there’s lots of us going under. Everywhere is gonna look like Canary Wharf.”

Supporter Paul Clarke has been going to Passing Clouds since it opened and has witnessed Dalston become a hive of creativity in the last 10 years.

He said: “The transformation of the area is largely down to a small number of businesses that acted as catalysts and Passing Clouds is the longest running, most successful of those. The regeneration is down to them.”

A petition to save the venue has gathered almost 13,000 signatures so far, while a crowdfunder has received £10,000 in donations.

MP Meg Hillier has also thrown her weight behind the campaign, saying the venue was part of what made Dalston a “magnet for creatives”.

She said: “It is vital developers and planners recognise it is venues like these that contribute so much to make areas desirable. If these are lost, some of the very reasons why Hackney is such a popular place to live and work are undermined.”