Universal Credit
Government expected to fail to meet rough sleeping target
The Government will fail to meet its target to end rough sleeping because of a ‘chronic shortage’ of affordable housing and support services, experts have warned.
Fresh calls to raise local housing allowance as councils battle homelessness
Fresh calls have been made for ministers to increase local housing allowance (LHA) after research revealed 85% of English councils are facing an increase in homelessness.
Rent arrears surge
Four in five council landlords have reported growing rent arrears over the past year, according to the findings of a new survey.
Call for Government to share more data with councils
Councils are struggling to reach households hit by the cost of living crisis due to the Government’s failure to share its data with local authorities.
Childcare warning after Budget announcement
Wider reform of childcare will be needed if ministers are to deliver a sustainable wraparound system for all families, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned.
People need help right now
Bristol’s culture of collaboration fostered through its One City approach has enabled the city to respond to the cost of living crisis, but national Government urgently needs to do more, says Marvin Rees.
Autumn Statement: £1bn extension to Household Support Fund
Local authorities will receive £1bn of funding to ensure vulnerable households are supported through the cost of living crisis, the chancellor has announced today.
Mini-Budget: Universal Credit sanctions tightened
Tens of thousands of people on Universal Credit face sanctions and reductions if they do not show up at jobcentres, under plans unveiled by the chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng.
Cost of living crisis risks leaving levelling up ‘dead on arrival’
The Government’s levelling up agenda could be undermined by a deepening North-South divide exacerbated by the cost of living crisis, a think tank has warned.
Call to end 'excessively punitive sanctions' on benefits
A think-tank has warned that sanctions on benefit claimants are almost back to pre-pandemic levels – despite the cost of living crisis.
How ‘levelling up’ got left out of the Spring Statement
The chancellor mentioned the ‘levelling up’ agenda just once in his Spring Statement. Without serious financial backing, the missions in the White Paper are at risk of remaining unfulfilled, says chair of SIGOMA Cllr Sir Stephen Houghton.
Spring statement: Sunak to tackle cost of living pressures
Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to tackle increasing pressure on household budgets when he makes his Spring Statement today.
Homelessness levels could rise by a third by 2024, research warns
The number of homeless people in England could increase by a third by 2024, new research has warned today.
Universal Credit would be better delivery vehicle for energy bills support
Universal Credit has the data on those likely to need support with energy bills and would be a more effective way to target the £150 council tax rebate, says Deven Ghelani.
Protecting London’s women and girls
Cllr Jas Athwal says that as we mark the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, London’s boroughs are committed to doing everything they can to address the many causes of violence against women and girls.
Call for investment in homelessness data
The head of Whitehall’s ‘what works’ centre on homelessness has called for better data infrastructure to help achieve the end of rough sleeping by 2024.
IFS reveals scope of Universal Credit
Budget changes to Universal Credit mean families with well above-average earnings and even paying 40% rates of tax could be entitled to the benefit, according to an Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) report.
A bounce back Budget
We got spending – and lots of it – in the Budget, yet its contents reflected conflict within the Cabinet on whether to push ahead with a Milton Friedman-style smaller government. Sir Bob Neill explains.
Councils hit by fund's admin burden
Frustrated councils are bracing themselves for an administration headache as they work out how to dole out the Government’s £500m household support fund.
Wages and good and bad government
Many communities in the UK would benefit from higher wages, says Mike Emmerich, but does the Prime Minister have a strategy for delivering them?