Housing association calls for ‘bedroom tax’ ban

Published by Riverside for Riverside in Housing

Riverside is stepping up its campaign urging the government to scrap plans to cut housing benefit for housing association and council tenants with spare bedrooms.

Under the proposed Welfare Reform Bill, working age tenants who under-occupy their homes, could see benefit cuts averaging £14 per week unless they move to a smaller property. This includes tenants with older children of the same sex, younger children of the opposite sex with separate bedrooms and separated parents with regular access to children who stay overnight. Riverside estimates that around 7,000 of its tenants could be affected.

Following lobbying by the housing sector - supported by Riverside’s social media campaign which included presenting our case direct to Lords via Twitter, a dedicated Facebook page and a downloadable letter template to enable tenants to write to their MPs - the House of Lords voted against the government’s proposals in December.

An amendment to exempt from the bedroom tax families with just one spare bedroom who are unable to move to a smaller property was supported by 258 to 190 votes. However, the proposal will return to the House of Commons in February.

Hugh Owen, Riverside’s Director of Policy and Communication, said: “While we welcome the amendment, we don’t want the decision to be reversed in the House of Commons. We have had a fantastic response to our Room Without Benefit campaign and would like to thank all those that have used the facility on our website to email the House of Lords representatives involved in the debate, written personal letters or been involved in the twitter campaign. But the fight is not over, we need to keep up the momentum and continue to pressure MPs to abandon the bedroom tax, or at least modify it in line with the Lords’ amendment.”

Warren Smith, Chair of the Riverside Tenants' and Residents' Federation, added: “Even if people who are affected wanted to move there are simply not enough smaller housing association and council properties to go round. Many people who find themselves with spare rooms because their circumstances have changed will face a big drop in their incomes at a time when fuel costs and food prices are rising steeply. Some will fall behind with their rent and could face eviction.

“Those who can’t afford to stay in their own homes will have to move to a smaller property, often in a different area because of the shortage of properties. This will disrupt families who support each other by helping with things like childcare and assisting ill or disabled relatives. A lack of space will also mean that grandparents won’t be able to help looking after grandchildren so that their own children can work, divorced fathers won’t be able to have their own children to stay over, and couples will find it difficult to foster vulnerable children. Important family support networks will be badly damaged.”

For more information visit: http://www.riverside.org.uk/a_room_without_benefit.aspx