Agenda item

The report of the Landlord Services Manager set out the latest information on the roll out of Universal Credit (UC) and the impact so far on the housing service.

UC was introduced into the East Devon area in July 2018.  The first rollout was for the eastern area of the district, followed by the west of the district in September 2018.  UC had been set up to provide one-monthly payment for people who were looking for work or on a low income and had replaced:

·           Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance

·           Income-related Employment and Support Allowance

·           Income Support

·           Child Tax Credits

·           Working Tax Credits

·           Housing Benefit

EDDC currently had 191 tenants claiming UC with a combined rent debt of £52,621.37.  Officers had managed to establish that prior to the commencement of UC in July 2018 that the combined debt outstanding on the same tenancies was £16,819.65.  This was a £35,801.72 increase of debt on those tenancies.  Of the 191 tenants currently claiming UC, 58 were in credit with their rent or had a zero balance, 19 had rent arrears of less than 2 weeks, 34 had rent arrears of between 2-4 weeks, 45 had rent arrears of between 4-8 weeks and 35 had rent arrears of more than 8 weeks. Officers were working with Housing Benefits to see if any of these arrears could be offset with Discretionary Housing Payment.

Looking at the average debt of tenants currently receiving UC it was forecast that another £316,642, on average, could be owed by the time all working age tenants on housing benefit had transitioned onto UC.

The standard process was that UC was paid directly to the tenants with an expectation that they would then pay the proportion that covered their rent directly to EDDC (as landlord). Positively, due to EDDC’s trusted landlord status it was possible to request for the rental element of a tenant’s UC claim to be paid directly to the Council.  This was a fairly straightforward process and to date it had been done for a proportion of the tenants effected. It was done through an assessment of an individual’s personal circumstances that takes into account the vulnerability of the tenant and their ability to pay their rent.

There were many concerns over UC.  These included:

·                People not prioritising their bills or managing their budget effectively, getting into debt and then a greater reliance on food banks, charities, utility subsidies.  Strain was also put on the resources within the rental team, with increases in arrears becoming harder to recover.

·                Pre Court Protocol meant that as a landlord EDDC must not commence actions it would usually have undertaken before service of possession proceedings whilst the tenant was in the process of transitioning to UC.  This meant that arrears would be at a higher rate before they could begin to be recouped through the Court process.

·                The necessity to apply for and manage UC claims through an online account, and this not being done correctly often held up, or even stopped claims.

·                Where a joint tenant had left the property but never removed their name from the tenancy, only half the UC claim could be paid.  As a landlord EDDC could not remove a person from the tenancy without that person being involved in the process.  These people had often moved on with their lives and did not wish to make contact.

Officers were looking at setting up a workshop within each area of the district to help tenants with budgeting and dealing with non-priority debts, so that the UC transition was smoother and easier for tenants.  Staff would help with digital skills and training if required.  The rental team would continue to refer tenants with multiple debts to Homemaker Southwest to receive expert independent advice.  It was noted that seasonal employment (and therefore income) in the district would constantly affect individuals’ UC claims.

A request was made for details about the workshops and help available to tenants to be circulated to the Board and also included in Housing Matters magazine.

The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) had launched some initiatives and made some changes to their services relating to UC.  These were outlined in the report and included DWP funding Citizens Advice Bureaux (CAB) to provide UC support from April 2019.  Over the past 12 months EDDC staff had been present at the Job Centres to help people with their claims and it was not yet clear whether the CAB would continue with this role.  Losing an impartial independent source of advice (from EDDC’s Benefits team) was likely to be missed by tenants.

The Board noted that UC represented one of the biggest risks in the Business Plan and thanked the Landlord Services Manager for her report.  The Portfolio Holder – Sustainable Homes and Communities congratulated all the teams on the work they had been doing.  Quarterly UC reports would be brought to the Board so that they could monitor what was happening.

RESOLVED: that the Board note the contents of the report informing them of the latest information on Universal Credit and the impact on East Devon District Council.