Communities in United Kingdom
Social Housing in Luton
GOOD PRACTICE TITLE: Social housing in Luton
KIND OF PRACTICE:
DOCUMENT AUTHOR (ORGANIZATION AND AUTHOR NAME): Mary Seacole Housing Association based on Luton Borough Council Housing Strategy 2011-15; Lennox Adams.
PLACE: Luton
CONTEXT, FIELD OF INTERVENTION:
Social housing in the UK is low cost housing allocated on the basis of need. With the exception of Northern Ireland, where it is provided only for rent, in the rest of the United Kingdom social housing includes the provision of rental dwellings, affordable home ownership as well as shared ownership schemes.
Social housing accounts for 17.5% of the total homes in England, while it is about 24% of the total housing stock in Scotland, about 17% in Northern Ireland and about 16.4% in Wales
PERIOD:
2007 to present
POPULATION, PARTICIPANTS:
We know that Luton has an identified and recognised problem with homelessness with more than 600 families currently in temporary emergency housing. The majority of homeless families are placed in private rented accommodation because of a lack of council housing. Moreover, the Council is increasingly using Bed & Breakfast (B&B) accommodation for short term stay because the number of properties available in the private sector has diminished due to high levels of demand for private rented accommodation. As a result, rents in the private sector are rising significantly, again due to demand. Consequently, many private properties are no longer affordable. The table following shows the sources of homelessness in Luton and the trends over the period 2007-2011. The main reason for homelessness continues to be “ejection from family or friends”.
Source: Luton Borough Council: Luton Housing Strategy 2010-1
COORDINATORS:
Luton Borough Council
METHODOLOGY (HOW THE PRACTICE WORKS):
Since implementation of the 1977 Housing Act, all municipalities in the United Kingdom are theoretically obliged to provide housing to those in housing need, assuming they meet certain criteria and match and comply with the priority groups.
The priority groups include vulnerable people in the population and priority is generally given by law to certain categories, including people who are homeless. In Scotland the Homelessness Scotland Act states that all Scottish citizens who are not adequately housed can file claims in court to obtain permanent housing from their local authorities
PARTICIPATORY PROCESS:
Since implementation of the 1977 Housing Act, all municipalities in the United Kingdom are theoretically obliged to provide housing to those in housing need, assuming they meet certain criteria and match and comply with the priority groups.
The priority groups include vulnerable people in the population and priority is generally given by law to certain categories, including people who are homeless. In Scotland the Homelessness Scotland Act states that all Scottish citizens who are not adequately housed can file claims in court to obtain permanent housing from their local authorities.
Luton Borough Council follows the guidelines laid down by the UK government in terms of social housing. As a result, the Council provides the following services:
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How to apply for a council home
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Help and advice from LBC Housing Solutions Service
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The Rent Deposit Scheme helping you to rent a home
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Sheltered housing and homes with care
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How to bid for council and housing association homes
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“I am homeless” can the council help me?
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Ending council tenancy, swapping council homes
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Help to buy – affordable home ownership
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Register for housing updates
Each service is explained at the Council’s website www.luton.gov.uk with a pamphlet and application forms that can be picked up at the Town Hall.
Luton Borough Council has large and small housing estates located in the town. The largest were built and maintained as “garden suburbs” with many open spaces and green areas. The Council also owns a large number of houses of various sizes, scattered around the town.
TIME TO BE SUCCESFUL (HOW MANY TIME THE PRACTICE TAKE TO ACHIEVE THEIR OBJECTIVES):
There is an assessment procedure in order to be successful in obtaining community housing. The most urgent cases are given priority. Even so, a claimant for community housing cannot be successful until such housing becomes available. Community housing becomes available when new houses are built or when a family vacates community housing ad moves into private accommodation. There is a shortage of community houses, while the number of people wanting community houses increases. This means the waiting list is long and the waiting time may be as much as 10 years.
VALIDITY (IF THE PARTICIPANTS THINK THAT THE PRACTICE RESOLVED THE PROBLEMATIC):
Social housing is provided by local councils (council houses) and housing associations. The reduction of council house building to virtually nothing between 1988 and 2009, combined with sale of council houses to sitting tenants meant that over one million local authority dwellings were transferred to housing associations. As a result, housing associations are now the main vehicle for affordable housing in England, currently managing 54% of social housing. A decline in public provision of social housing occurred also in Scotland and in Wales, although in Scotland the local authority housing stock continues to be larger than that of registered social landlords, and in Wales the social housing sector is evenly split between local authorities and registered social landlords.
The situation is different in Northern Ireland in that there was no large scale stock transfer of public housing to housing associations. Instead, local authorities transferred their homes to the Northern Ireland Housing Executive, Northern Ireland’s strategic housing authority which currently manages over two thirds of the social housing stock in the region
IMPACT:
The impact of community housing in Luton has shaped much of the town’s character. Much of the town’s community housing is concentrated in large housing estates, namely,
• Marsh Farm
• Lewsey Farm
• Hockwell ring
• Farley Hill
• Runfold Estate
where there is housing for more than 5000 families
INNOVATION:
The provision of community housing means that dwellings must be affordable. The usual solution is for high density housing with high-rise block of flats. This innovation was applied to Luton in the 1960s and 1970s but rejected when people complained about living in high-rise blocks. The innovation of high density low-rise was selected as an alternative with as many as 60 dwellings per hectare.
RESOURCES OR CONDITIONS NEEDED FOR THE PRACTICE:
Luton Borough Council needs its own land to provide community housing because the commercial value of private land is too high. Even so, the Council has been purchasing small parcels of land (brownfield sites) at a rate of some £2,000,000 per hectare.
LIMITATIONS:
Luton cannot grow much larger because it is “hemmed-in” by the county of Hertfordshire to the west, south and east and by Central Bedfordshire Council to the north. There are no “greenfield” sites in the Luton unitary district and a few brownfield sites as land uses change. As a result, Luton can only grow with the support and permission of surrounding districts.
LEARNED LESSONS: :
The idea of community housing is excellent and ideal for low income families. As a result of this families remain in community housing, some for 60+ years. The original idea of community hosing was for short-term solutions when families would leave community housing for private housing after a few years. /this did not happen.
SUSTAINABILITY:
It was stated earlier that Luton is following UK government advice to deal with homeless people. The community housing models described above make no reference to homeless people, only to affordable rents, which could be as low as 60% of the market value.
Despite the law, homeless people do not have an automatic right to social housing. This is because there is a waiting list for social housing in Luton. People join the list, if they are eligible, and progress up the list until social housing becomes available, which they can either accept or refuse. A refusal means re-joining the list and waiting longer.
This waiting time can take years before someone qualifies for social housing but if a person’s need is especially great then the following policy comes into play.
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Luton Borough Council will deliver an effective early intervention and prevention with a focus on education, employment, health and wellbeing.
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Luton Borough Council will prevent homelessness through delivery of rapid and effective assessment.
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Luton Borough Council will use only the most appropriate temporary accommodation to prevent further social and economic deterioration.
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Luton Borough Council will manage demand by ensuring that they address over expectation and make the best use of our social housing stock
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Luton Borough Council will try to increase access to and the supply of affordable accommodation to prevent future homelessness. This means getting support from organisations such as MSHA.
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Luton Borough Council will prevent homelessness by supporting single homeless and reduce rough sleeping by half. This means getting the support of organisations such as MSHA
REPLICABILITY:
Luton’s policy for community housing can be replicated if the laws governing land ownership and tenancy are similar to those in UK, as well as and social desire for family houses rather than apartments.
CONCLUSION:
Luton’s community housing policy was developed as a means of solving homelessness. It was long-known that a person’s chance of finding employment increases if there is a permanent address. It was also well known that families inhabiting community housing are also low-income families. In many cases housing has been provided for the lifetime of the family rather than as a short-term measure. Community housing has given many family the opportunity to save money and improve their social status.