New Deal For Disabled People Consultation Seminar NDDP Personal

							How will tenants respond to the
   Local Housing Allowance
 reforms? Reflections on the
      existing evidence

  Yvette Hartfree and Grahame Whitfield

   Centre for Research in Social Policy
              What is LHA?
• Most radical change to HB since its introduction
• Only applies to tenants in the PRS
• Replaced HB with flat-rate allowance based on
  location & household size
• Payments made to tenants
• Introduced in 9 pathfinder areas in 2003/04,
  national roll-out in April 2008
  LHA national roll-out model
• Rates set at 50th percentile / median
• 5 bed cap
• Claimants able to keep an excess of
  £15/week
    Core Evaluation Findings
• Low awareness and understanding of how
  LHA worked
• Paying rent was a priority – claimants took this
  responsibility very seriously
• LHA did not appear to increase housing choice
• Claimants not motivated to move to cheaper
  accommodation to maximise an excess
• Safeguard provisions for vulnerable claimants
  did not work well
        LHA reformed model
•   Rates set at 30th percentile
•   New upper limits for each property size
•   4 bed cap
•   Excess removed
•   Shared room rate extended to under 35’s
•   Increases to non-dependent deductions
•   Increase to DHP fund
•   New allowance for a non-resident carer
   Implementing the Changes
• Raising understanding and awareness of the
  changes
• Transitional protection arrangements for
  existing claimants
• LA role to help claimants negotiate with
  landlords - incentive of transferring payments
  to landlords
• Allocation of Discretionary Housing Payment
  funds
What we think might happen –
        low concern
• Additional room allowance for a non-
  resident carer
• Removal of excess
• 4 bed cap
• Increases to non-dependent deductions
What we think might happen –
       high concern
• Rents set at 30th percentile / rent caps:
   -   Minimal impact where rents are already below
       LHA rates
   -   Negotiations with landlord
   -   Moving
   -   Staying put – ability to manage a shortfall
• Extension of shared room rate to u35’s
• Support for vulnerable claimants
Centre for Research in Social Policy
         Schofield Building
     Loughborough University
           Loughborough
           Leicestershire
             LE11 3TU

 Telephone: +44 (0)1509 223372
       crsp@lboro.ac.uk
        www.crsp.ac.uk