Housing Justice News

22nd October 2008
Chief Executive gives Inaugural Annual Lecture

Giving the inaugural Housing Justice lecture on 22 nd October, Alison Gelder spoke of the need to change the values of society so that we think of houses and flats as homes rather than assets.

The lecture was both a contribution to the Get Fair campaign and to the debate which is running ahead of the housing reform green paper which Communities and Local Government plan to publish before the end of the year.

Read the full lecture here >>

Churches and Homelessness

(the article appeared in the 12th September issue of Inside Housing magazine)

The new CLG Homelessness Strategy this autumn will be poorer if it does not acknowledge the work of churches and faith based agencies. Housing Justice has many such members around the country, providing vital services like drop-ins, night shelters, advice and signposting to homeless and vulnerable people.

Currently there is something like a two tier system, with churches and smaller groups providing needs-led help outside the funding and referral mechanisms of local authorities and larger agencies. This means that their stock of expertise and relationships with those most likely to reject “official” help is underutilised, while larger service providers struggle to meet demand.

Take the need for low threshold shelter, especially in the winter. Since direct access hostels have all but disappeared in London and elsewhere many churches have organised shelter schemes, typically 7 churches opening for one night each. In London there are 10 boroughs benefitting from this extra provision, mostly unfunded by the local authority, while front line staff in homeless persons units are only too glad to refer “non priority” homeless people for shelter. Another innovative approach is that of Green Pastures and others, whose Christian investors house people directly and arrange appropriate pastoral support with local churches.

Not to involve the good will and experience of churches and faith groups in the new strategy would not just be missing a trick - it would be forgetting that faith action created many of our national institutions and voluntary sector, and still plays a vital role in the renewal of society.

Alastair Murray
Regions Coordinator, Housing Justice

20th August 2008 - The Autumn 2008 issue of HJ News is out
Following restructuration, we have not been sitting on our hands, and the newsletter is packed with exciting news, including:

Get your copy here >>

Cardinal highlights needs of homeless people and immigrants
Archbishop of Westminster (and President of Housing Justice) Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor highlighted the exclusion felt by homeless people and immigrants in our society in his Christmas 2007 homily.
Read the Homily>>

Prospect of soup run ban raised again
Westminster City Council is reported to be be determined to implement a soup run ban. Westminster believe that soup runs bring rough sleepers out of hostels and on to the streets. Councillor Angela Harvey of Westminster commented "when you see 50 to 80 people waiting for a soup run, they are not homeless people by and large. The majority will not be rough sleepers... you see them going off with large carrier bags stuffed full of food which is for them and their house mates. We know they are in work and housed."

The move was condemned by Mayor of London Ken Livingstone who stated "I don't think anyone seriously faced with the choice of coming into a hostel will stay on the street because of a soup run, and the idea with all the other problems we've got, with crime, that we should have police diverted to seizing their soup is just bizarre. I think this was just another: 'Can we move the poor on from Westminister?'"
BBC - Do soup kitchens help the homeless?


London Winter Shelters 2007 - 2008 List published
Homeless London has published the annual Winter Shelters List which gives details of the different shelters that are open over the winter months. The list includes contact and referral details as well the dates and areas of operation.
London Winter Shelter List>>


Almost 83,000 homeless families still in temporary accommodation
The latest statutory homelessness figures show that at the 30 September 2007 82,750 households were in temporary accommodation under the terms of the homelessness legislation - 76% of these families contained children.
CLG - Statutory Homelessness: 3rd Quarter 2007, England>>

BSHF launches report looking at the needs of Gypsies and Travellers
Charity the Building and Social Housing Foundation has launched a report looking at the housing needs of Gypsies and Travellers in England. It would take only one square mile of land to give space to the 21% of Gypsies and Travellers who in 2006 were homeless as they had no place to legally park their caravans.
BSHF - Out in the Open: Providing Accommodation, Promoting Understanding and Recognising Rights of Gypsies and Travellers>>

Soup run ban dropped
Housing Justice logoFollowing campaigning by Housing Justice, soup runs, churches, homelessness cahrities and individuals the proposed ban on soup runs has been dropped from the legislation.
Read the news release>>

Housing Justice campaigns against proposed curbs on soup runs
Housing Justice has submitted a response to proposals made by Westminster City Council which would restrict the operation of soup runs in central London. The measure is included in a draft London Local Authorities bill which will be decided in mid-November.
Soup Run Forum response to measure>>
BBC - Soup for homeless could be curbed>>
Guardian - letters to the editor>>
Independent - letter to the editor>>
Independent - Soup run ban 'could cut lifeline to homeless'>>

Housing Justice's Alastair Murray also spoke about this issue on the BBC Radio 4 Today Programme on Tuesday 13 November 2007

At the meeting to decide whether to include the measure Mayor of London Ken Livingstone commented "It is quite wrong to seek to criminalise the activities of those who run soup kitchens and provide much-needed assistance."

The Reverend Chigor Chike prepared a paper for Housing Justice UNLEASH looking at some of the theological issues surrounding soup runs in 2005, it is still relevant today>>

Hazel Blears launches evaluation of Guide Neigbourhoods programme
The Communities Secretary has launched an evaluation of the Guide Neighbourhoods programme

CLG - Learning to Change Neighbourhoods: Lessons from the Guide Neighbourhoods Programme - Evaluation Report>>
Summary report>>

Housing Justice responds to Housing Green paper
Housing Justice has responded to the consultation on the housing green paper Homes for the future: more affordable, more sustainable offering broad support for the proposed increases in house building. The summary of consultation responses and the government's response will be published early in 2008

Darling pledges £4billion for housing
Chancellor of the Exchequer Alastair Darling has announced the results of the Comprehensive Spending Review which lays out government expenditure until 2011. In his statement to the House of Commons the Chancellor pledged the funding necessary to finance the new social housing announced in the Housing Green paper
Summary of CSR main points>>
Information on the CSR on the Treasury website>>

Homelessness down but almost 85,000 homeless families still in temporary accommodation
The latest statutory homelessness figures have been pubished by the government. They show that in the April – June quarter acceptances under the terms of the homelessness legislation by local authorities in England were down 18% on the same period in 2006 and at the lowest level since the 1980s. The number of homeless families being accommodated in temporary accommodation at the end of the quarter also fell – by 10% on 2006 – and now stands at 84,900 families. In 2005 the government gave a commitment to halve the number of families (from the 2005 level of around 73,000) in temporary accommodation by 2010.
CLG - Statutory homelessness: 2nd quarter 2007>>

Cameron argues that communities are best at tackling deprivation
Conservative Party leader David Cameron has argued that communities are best at tackling poverty and deprivation rather than the state
Read the article in the Guardian>>

Average house could cost £300,000 within five years
According to a report from the National Housing Federation the average house in England will sell for more than £300,000 within five years whilst in London houses will cost on average £500,000. The figures were produced for the NHF by independent researchers and illustrate the impact of low levels of house building on prices. The NHF is calling for the government to finance the construction of 70,000 new homes a year from 2008 - 2011 to begin to address the problem
Read Home Truths: the case for 70,000 new social homes a year>>
BBC coverage of report>>

Housing Justice supports London Citizens' Tent City protest
Housing Justice supported the recent Tent City protest outside City Hall organised by London Citzens. Protesters put up over 100 tents on Potters Field near to City Hall (the Greater London Assembly building) on the Southbank. The protest was calling for commitments to introduce community land trusts in London. Community land trusts are used extensively in the USA to enable affordable housing to be built. Partly as a result of the protest the Mayor of London has announced the first 100 home CLT pilot in Bow, East London.
BBC News report>>
London Citizens website>>
London Citizens' Our homes our London report>>

Housing minister admits definition of overcrowding is outdated
Baroness Andrews, Parliamentary under Secretary of State at the Communities and Local Government department, has admitted that the current definition of overcrowding -established in 1935- is out of date and said that no-one in government would defend it. She acknowledged that 500,000 families are living in overcrowded accommodation if the 'bedroom standard' is applied. However she stated that there was "no point" in changing the definition until local authorities were in a position to accommodate the families.
Lords Hansard debate>>

Interview with Alastair Murray
As part of its coverage of the Housing Justice UNLEASH conference Action on homelessness: a hand out or a hand up website Christian Today have published an interview carried out at the conference.
Interview with Alastair Murray>>
Report of conference>>

 Channel 4's Empire's Children to feature family who were rehoused by CHAS
Channel 4's series Empire's Children on Monday will feature the story of actor Chris Bisson who will be researching the history of his grandfather . Bisson's grandfather came to England from Trinidad in 1964 with his wife and nine children. Finding themselves homeless as a result of debt they were referred by a priest to CHAS in London. Through its Out of London scheme CHAS were able to buy a house in Manchester which it used to house the large family. The programme is to be broadcast on Monday 23 July 2007 at 9pm and will be available to watch on the Channel 4 website afterwards, it will be repeated on More4 on Wednesday 29 August.
Empire's Children information>>

New study shows inequality at 40 year high
A new study by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows that inequality in Britain is at a 40 year high and that over the past 40 years the number of 'average' households, ie neither rich nor poor, has declined as inequality increased and rich areas have tended to get richer and poor areas poorer. Read the JRF findings>>

Brown hints at new role for councils in building housing
According to press reports of Prime Minister Gordon Brown's speech to a Labour Party audience the housing green paper will give local authorities a greater role in providing affordable housing and would have the freedom to use their own land for building and retain rental income to invest in further homes. The green paper is expected on 23 July 2007
See the report in the Observer>>

The Independent Big Question: How should we deal with the crisis over affordable housing?
The Independent has analysed the problem of affordable housing in its Big Question series. See the article>>

Housing Justice publishes Agenda for Brown
In the the latest edition of our newsletter we have outlined some of the issues that we think the new Gordon Brown-led government must tackle in the housing and homelessness area.
Click here for the Agenda for Brown>>

July 2007 edition of Housing Justice News published
The latest edition of Housing Justice News, our newsletter for supporters and other interested in our work, has been published. Amongst other articles it contains features on Gordon's Brown's plans for housing, the Just Housing account as well as updates on the latest developments at Housing Justice
Download Housing Justice News>>

Brown announces 3 million new homes by 2020
Prime Minister Gordon Brown pledged in his 'draft Queen's Speech' on 11 July 2007 to increase house building to 240,000 new homes a year by 2016, in total an increase of 3million new homes over the period to 2020. Details of the programme -including how many of the new homes will be affordable housing- will be announced next week when Housing Minister Yvette Cooper launches the housing green paper. Housing Justice welcomes the commitment to increase housing supply. We will be pushing the government to ensure that the new housing built includes adequate affordable housing to rent. Read the full statement>>

Housing Justice contributes to Issues Today homelessness resource book for schools
Housing Justice has contributed material to publisher Independence's new Issues Today key stage 3 schools resource book on homelessness.
See the Independence Publishing website for further information>>


Housing Justice joins with other charities to demand government action on homelessness
In a letter to the Times Housing Justice Chief Executive Alison Gelder has joined with the heads of other housing and homelessness organisations to call on Gordon Brown-led government to tackle the deep exclusion faced by homeless people.
Read the letter>>

 

Housing Justice welcomes announcement of new Communities Secretary and Housing Minister in the Cabinet
New Prime Minister Gordon Brown has announced that Hazel Blears MP will be Communities Secretary in his government. Brown has also announced that Housing Minister Yvette Cooper MP will be attending Cabinet from the Communities and Local Government department. Housing Justice welcomes this move and we look forward to the increased prominence that housing policy will have in government.We hope that the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review will
Full list of the new Cabinet>>

Latest government homelessness figures published - over 87,000 families still in temporary accommodation
The latest statutory homelessness figures have been published. The figures show the downwward trend in homelessness acceptances has continued and there has been a slight decline in the number of families in temporary accommodation.

There are still 87,120 homeless families having to live in temporary accommodation whilst they await rehousing - more than double the number when the current Labour government came to power in 1997.
CLG - Statutory homelessness: 1st quarter 2007>>

Guide Neighbourhoods on YouTube
The Housing Justice Regenerate Guide Neighbourhoods DVD launched at the House of Commons in May has been uploaded to YouTube.
You can view the video here:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=U4DSQDJ7Ttg

Housing Justice UNLEASH conference: Action on Homelessness: a Hand out or a Hand up? 19 July 2007 London
Is this an either /or question?
Voluntary church and faith groups are good at giving essential help like food and clothes to people who are homeless and excluded. Is there a tension between meeting immediate needs and encouraging people toward independence? How best can we help people move on from homelessness? And who decides? Join us for this one day conference which will be looking at this important question.
Further information on the Housing Justice UNLEASH News page>>
Read the News Release>>

Housing Justice welcomes Brown's commitment to new housing
Housing Justice has welcomed Gordon Brown's commitments to building more affordable housing to rent. Speaking as part of his campaign for the Labour Party Leadership Brown spoke of his wish for more affordable housing. He also has spoken about the role of churches in contributing to building strong sustainable communities.
Read the news release >>
Gordon Browns speech>>
BBC1 Sunday AM interview transcript>>

New Guide Neighbourhoods DVD launched at Parliamentary reception
The Guide Neighbourhoods Programme launched a new DVD at a reception in Parliament attended by former Home Secretary David Blunkett and Cabinet Office Minister Hazel Blears. Copies of the new DVD are available from Housing Justice
See the News Release>>

Housing Justice supports Strangers into Citizens
Housing Justice is supporting London Citizens' campaign to create a pathway to legal rights for undocumented migrants who have been in the UK for four or more years.
Strangers into Citizens have organised a national day of action and celebration in London on Bank Holiday Monday 7 May 2007.
Further information on the Strangers into Citizens website>>
Flyer for days events>>


Homelessness falls...
The latest government homelessness figures for England and Wales show that in the last quarter of 2006 17,310 households were accepted as homeless by local authorities. This is 18% lower than in the same period in 2005 and the lowest level since the 1980s. The government has attributed the fall to successful implementation of the 2002 Homelessness Act which placed new duties on local authorities to prevent as well as respond to homelessness.
...But 90,000 families still in temporary accommodation
The number of homeless households in temporary accommodation whilst awaiting permanent housing has also fallen, but not so dramatically. At the end of the quarter 89,510 households were in temporary accommodation – down 9% on 2005 but still more than double the level when Labour came to power in 1997. The government has given a commitment to reduce the number of families in temporary accommodation to 50,000 by 2010.
CLG - Statutory Homelessness 4th Quarter, 2006 England

And 1.6million on housing waiting lists
Other government figures show that there are over 1.6million households in England on social housing waiting lists.

Guide Neigbourhoods Network Conference
The Guide Neighbourhoods Network Conference will take place on Monday 26 February in Birmingham. This will be a practical one day event focused on resident-led regeneration. Further information is available on the Events page of the Housing Justice Regenerate section>>

Housing Justice supports National Housing Federation's fuel poverty campaign
Housing Justice is supporting this campaign which is calling on fuel companies to stop penalising households who use pre-payment fuel meters to buy their electricity and gas. Families using these meters who are usually among the poorest in society are charged more for their fuel than other households. Further information is available on the NHF website www.housing.org.uk/fuel.

Housing Justice supports Law Society's What Price Justice campaign
Housing justice has signed up to support the Law Society's What Price Justice campaign to guarantee an adequately funded legal aid system ensuring quality representation and access to justice for all. An Early Day Motion (EDM 537) has been tabled in Parliament on this matter - click here to see if your MP has signed it. Further information is on the Campaign website www.whatpricejustice.lawsociety.org.uk

Housing Justice contribute to schools homelessness resource book
Housing Justice have contributed several sections to Homelessness a publication produced by Independence Press in their Issues series of resource books aimed at A Level students. Further information on the book is available on the publisher's website>>

Housing Justice questions need for intentionality test for homeless people
Following the screening of the BBC 1 programme Evicted Housing Justice submitted a letter to the Guardian raising the problems caused by the administration of Housing Benefit and the application of intentionality tests to homeless people, it was grouped with four others under the title The problem of the 'intentionally' homeless Guardian 5 December 2006>>

Robina Rafferty presented with Faithworks award
Housing Justice's first Chief Executive Robina Rafferty MBE who retired this summer has been awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by Faithworks for her "unstinting dedication to issues of housing and homelessness in the UK over a 30-year career" Robina was presented with the award by the Rev Steve Chalke at a ceremony held on 7 November 2006 hosted by the Rt Hon Stephen Timms MP and Gary Streeter MP in the House of Commons.

Homelessness Sunday 28 January 2007: No Home No Justice
Homelessness Sunday 2007 will be held on 28 January 2007. The theme for the 15th Homelessness Sunday is No Home – No Justice.
In our affluent consumer society we are all encouraged to think of our dwellings as monetary assets rather than as the heart of family life, as places of comfort and safe refuge, and as key components of our identity. In contrast Homelessness Sunday will focus on some of the injustices that are linked with homelessness. The Resource Pack will feature material on affordability; the shortage of social housing; rural homelessness; homeless and destitute asylum seekers and the problems faced by Central European nationals in Britain who are not entitled to welfare benefits. For further information on the packs please contact Ellen Byrne on 020 7723 7273 or email hs@ housingjustice.org.uk or see the Homelessness Sunday website www.homelessness-sunday.org.uk.

Ken Leech's reflection at the launch of Housing Justice UNLEASH
Ken Leech's inspirational reflection on church action to fight poverty and oppression which he gave at the launch of Housing Justice UNLEASH is now available in the Worship section>>