Warning over homeless resulting from welfare reforms

Homeless Link, the umbrella body for homelessness charities, wants a commitment from the Government to “respond quickly” should welfare reform lead to a rise in homelessness and wants organisations “held to account” if they do not provide a good service. This follows the publication of a new report Making Every Contact Count from the Department for Communities and Local Government. The report was launched by Grant Shapps, housing minister, in addition to extra funding to support the extended roll-out of the No Second Night Out scheme, originally launched in London.

Rick Henderson, new chief executive of Homeless Link, said homeless numbers have “risen sharply” in recent years and the evidence suggests that, in many cases, this could have been prevented. He said, “The vision behind this report - that homeless is everyone’s business – is welcomed, as is the ambition that we should all expect the best possible help if we find ourselves threatened with homelessness. However, with the potential for welfare reform to further fuel homeless numbers and funding cuts to the very services that help homeless people, this report lacks detail on how this ambition will be achieved in practice.”

For more on this story, see Government told to step-in if welfare cuts increase homelessness and Disappointment at homelessness strategy

Furthermore, the money given to local authorities is simply dwarfed by the savings to be found by any one local authority in any given financial year.  It’s like having an arm hacked off and someone offering to kiss it better.