Council and RSLs discuss impact of Welfare Reform

Dumfries and Galloway councillors and officers and representatives of major Registered Social Landlords came together in Dumfries on Thursday. They held a very positive meeting to discuss the impact of Welfare Reform on social housing tenants.

Dumfries and Galloway Council’s position is that it would like Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) to consider a non-eviction policy for arrears accrued due to Welfare Reform. The RSLs outlined the risks associated with this, though pointed out that there has been no such eviction due to Welfare Reform in our region.

Council leader, Councillor Ronnie Nicholson, said, “There were detailed and positive discussions around the table. I hope to see this useful dialogue will continue. The £1.6 million for Discretionary Housing Payments has meant that Dumfries and Galloway is in a good position at the moment, but we cannot predict what will happen in the future. I hope we can work towards a protocol which will achieve the principle of non-eviction which is the ultimate aim of our Council.”

Jayne Moore, Director of Housing Services at DGHP, said, “This was a welcome discussion which forms a good basis to move forwards. There has been great progress over the last few months, but our position is that a non-eviction policy is a risk for us. It is not feasible at present because of the uncertainly of what will happen in the future. We carry out a lot of discussion with tenants to see how we can support them and encourage people to apply for Discretionary Housing Payments where appropriate. The zero level of evictions due to Bedroom Tax arrears shows that we have been successful with this policy. As part of any future protocol, it would be useful to set out the steps that RSLs take before we go down the route of eviction.”

Rob Stephenson, Head of Housing at Loreburn Housing Association said, “We are keen to continue these talks and to develop a protocol, though we do share the concern about the risks and legal aspects of a non-eviction policy. There is more to come in terms of Welfare Reform which could have a further more significant impact. We have already done a lot of work with the Council on assisting vulnerable tenants to see that they receive the appropriate exemptions from Bedroom Tax and this work will continue. There has also been good and accelerating progress on the Common Housing Register (CHR). Whilst we already work with other RSLs on possible housing exchanges for people who wish to move to a different sized home, when introduced the CHR will allow us all to see the pool of available social housing and make the process smoother, providing a better service for customers.”

Dumfries and Galloway Council and the RSLs are expected to meet again soon after the Department of Work and Pensions announcement on the level of Discretionary Housing Payment funding.