The Regulation of Financial Services (Land Transactions) Act received Royal assent. The Act was designed to extend the powers of the financial services regulator to cover home reversion plans and their Sharia-compliant equivalents.
Source: Regulation of Financial Services (Land Transactions) Act 2005, HM Treasury, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Text of Act | Explanatory notes | HOC Library research paper
Date: 2005-Dec
A report examined government policies on race, equality, and community cohesion, from the perspective of both housing providers and of the 'housed'. It said that there was a gap between what government said should be done, and the realities and practicalities that applied at community level.
Source: Malcolm Harrison, Deborah Phillips, Kusminder Chahal, Lisa Hunt and John Perry, Housing, Race and Community Cohesion, Chartered Institute of Housing (024 7685 1700) and Council of Mortgage Lenders
Links: Summary
Date: 2005-Dec
A report called on the government to urgently review housing legislation, in order to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping among young people who had been in prison.
Source: The Key to the Future?: The housing needs of young adults in prison, Howard League for Penal Reform (020 7249 7373)
Links: Report | HLPR press release
Date: 2005-Dec
The government announced (in the Pre-Budget Report) that funding for the Supporting People programme (helping a wide variety of disadvantaged groups) would be cut to 1,685 million in 2006-07, down from 1,715 million in 2005-06.
Source: Britain Meeting the Global Challenge: Enterprise, fairness and responsibility - Pre-Budget Report, Cm 6701, HM Treasury, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | HMT press release | NHF press release | Guardian report
Date: 2005-Dec
A report summarized the findings of research into Muslim tenants' needs, aspirations, and perceptions of service delivery in the housing association sector.
Source: Muslim Tenants in Housing Associations: Feedback and engagement, Sector Study 46, Housing Corporation (020 7393 2000)
Links: Report
Date: 2005-Nov
The government began consultation on its initial strategy for taking forward the Supporting People programme (provision of housing-related support services to enable vulnerable people to live independently). It set out a proposed model to facilitate more focused and integrated service delivery.
Source: Creating Sustainable Communities: Supporting Independence, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (020 7944 3000)
Links: Consultation document | Community Care report
Date: 2005-Nov
A report provided an updated estimate of how many social rented homes were needed to meet the recommendations in the Barker Review of housing supply and the government's target to halve the number of people in temporary accommodation by 2010.
Source: Alan Holmans, Sarah Monk, Aoife Ni Luanaigh and Christine Whitehead, Building for the Future 2005 Update, Shelter (020 7505 4699)
Links: Report | Technical note
Date: 2005-Nov
An article discussed the findings of a scoping study of models of good practice with regard to accommodation and related services for people with mental health problems.
Source: Lisa O'Malley and Karen Croucher, 'Supported housing services for people with mental health problems: A Scoping Study', Housing Studies, Volume 20 Number 5
Links: Abstract
Date: 2005-Oct
An audit report reviewed the Supporting People programme (launched in April 2003 to provide a better quality of life for vulnerable people and to help them live more independently). It said that services had improved, but that delivery on the ground was not consistently good. There needed to be a long-term commitment and a financial framework to underpin minimum standards.
Source: Supporting People, Audit Commission (0800 502030)
Links: Report | Audit Commission press release
Date: 2005-Oct
A report provided a summary of how the housing market linked with the labour market. It examined the assumption that job loss and economic decline underpinned the weak demand for housing in some parts of the country. It looked in detail at the flows of people into the labour market and how these worked together as a system to impact on the demand for housing.
Source: Labour Market Flows and the Demand for Social Housing, Housing Corporation (020 7393 2000)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Oct
The government announced that families in England needing to adapt their homes to care for a disabled child would no longer be subject to means testing, from December 2005.
Source: House of Commons Hansard, Written Ministerial Statement 27 October 2005, column 13WS, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Hansard | ODPM press release | JRF press release | NCH press release
Date: 2005-Oct
A report provided an independent evaluation of the disabled facilities grant. It said that adaptations provided through the grant were consistently effective. (The disabled facilities grant provides means-tested support for housing adaptations.)
Source: Frances Heywood et al., Reviewing the Disabled Facilities Grant Programme, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (0870 1226 236)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Oct
A report said that young people in Wales were falling further and further behind in their attempts to get on to the property ladder: for younger working households the average house price to income ratio had reached 4 to 1.
Source: Steve Wilcox, Young, Working and Homeless?: Younger working households in Wales and the affordability crisis, Chartered Institute of Housing Cymru (029 2076 5760)
Links: Report (pdf) | Report (pdf) (Welsh) | CIH press release
Date: 2005-Sep
A new book examined recent changes in the field of community care and supported housing.
Source: Mark Foord and Paul Simic (eds.), Housing, Community Care and Supported Housing, Chartered Institute of Housing (024 7685 1700)
Links: Summary
Date: 2005-Sep
The Northern Ireland Executive published a five-year strategy for housing support services.
Source: Supporting People, Changing Lives: The Supporting People Strategy for 2005-2010, Northern Ireland Housing Executive (028 9024 0588)
Links: Report (pdf) | NIE press release
Date: 2005-Sep
A research report said that social exclusion, poverty and discrimination largely accounted for the comparatively high rates of statutory homelessness found in all ethnic minority groups.
Source: Marie-Claude Gervais and Hamid Rehman, Causes of Homelessness Amongst Ethnic Minority Populations, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (0870 1226 236)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | ODPM press release
Date: 2005-Sep
A guide said that social housing providers needed to engage more constructively in securing accommodation for refugees and asylum seekers, and in making community support services available to assist integration.
Source: John Perry, Housing and Support Services for Asylum Seekers and Refugees: A good practice guide, Chartered Institute of Housing (024 7685 1700) for Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Report (pdf) | JRF Findings 0455 | JRF press release
Date: 2005-Sep
A report said that the transfer of local authority homes to black and minority ethnic housing associations had not been a priority, and that more should be done to ensure the growth of specialist BME housing providers.
Source: Campbell Tickell (consultants), BME Housing Associations and Stock Transfers, Housing Corporation (020 7393 2000)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Sep
A report summarized the key findings from a survey of people using services that were eligible for funding via the Supporting People programme. (The programme funds a wide variety of services, helping people in particular circumstances - such as families experiencing homelessness, or people with mental health problems - trying to live independently.)
Source: Supporting People: Key findings from the Supporting People baseline user survey, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (0870 1226 236)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Aug
A guide said that, despite negative perceptions of the sheltered housing sector, there were examples of "excellent, innovative, customer-focused" practice.
Source: Imogen Parry and Lyn Thompson, Sheltered and Retirement Housing: A good practice guide, Chartered Institute of Housing (024 7685 1700)
Links: Summary | Community Care report
Date: 2005-Aug
A report said that local councils across Scotland feared they would be unable to meet their duties to homeless people under new legislation, because of cuts in the Supporting People funding programme. (The programme funds a wide variety of services, helping people in particular circumstances - such as families experiencing homelessness, or people with mental health problems - trying to live independently.)
Source: Supporting People?: The impact of changes to Supporting People funding on services to homeless people, Shelter Scotland (0131 473 7170)
Links: Summary | Shelter press release
Date: 2005-Aug
An article said that the government's housing policies were more concerned with controlling teenage parents at risk of welfare dependency than with giving them genuine support.
Source: Susanna Giullari and Mary Shaw, 'Supporting or controlling? New Labour s housing strategy for teenage parents', Critical Social Policy, Volume 25 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2005-Aug
A report explored the recruitment and retention issues affecting, and the housing preferences of, key workers. Although the majority of key workers were intrinsically motivated to join their profession, future career intentions were heavily influenced by quality-of-life issues.
Source: Tessa Clatworthy and Debra Crush, Key Public Sector Workers: Exploring recruitment and retention issues and housing preferences, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (0870 1226 236)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf)
Date: 2005-Aug
A report said that the Key Worker Living Programme (which began in April 2004 and superseded the Starter Home Initiative) was making a "positive contribution" towards improving recruitment and retention of key workers.
Source: GHK Consulting and Centre for Urban and Regional Studies/University of Birmingham, Evaluation of Key Worker Living: Early findings, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (0870 1226 236)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf) | ODPM press release
Date: 2005-Aug
Researchers assessed the effectiveness of the Starter Home Initiative (designed to deliver affordable housing to help address problems of the recruitment and retention of key workers). They found that the scheme had demonstrated good levels of targeting and value for money.
Source: James Morgan, Glen Bramley, Lin Cousins and Kathleen Dunmore, Evaluation of the Starter Home Initiative: Final report, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (0870 1226 236)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf)
Date: 2005-Aug
The Regulation of Financial Services (Land Transactions) Bill was given a third reading. The Bill aimed to extend the powers of the financial services regulator to cover home reversion plans and their Sharia-compliant equivalents.
Source: Regulation of Financial Services (Land Transactions) Bill, HM Treasury, TSO (0870 600 5522) | House of Commons Hansard, Debate 20 July 2005, columns 1327-1337, TSO
Links: Text of Bill | Explanatory notes | Hansard | HOC Library research paper (pdf)
Date: 2005-Jul
A report examined ways to provide affordable housing which focused on the needs of socially excluded young people. It called for housing that offered a place to live, and an investment in the sustainability of local communities. Despite popular perceptions that young people wanted to leave their communities, over three-quarters of those questioned wanted to remain in their local area.
Source: Firm Foundations, Centrepoint (020 7426 5300)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2005-Jun
The Housing Corporation published a strategy statement setting out how it would engage with and support housing associations in responding to the needs of vulnerable people.
Source: Housing for Vulnerable People: Strategy statement, Housing Corporation (020 7393 2000)
Links: Statement (pdf)
Date: 2005-Jun
The Welsh Assembly Government announced that families with disabled children would no longer have to pass a means test for the disabled facilities grant (available to fund adaptations that enabled disabled people to continue to live in their own homes).
Source: Press release 27 April 2005, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: WAG press release | Mencap press release
Date: 2005-Apr
A report said that day centres for homeless people provided crucial support to help older vulnerable people who were housed to sustain their tenancies. Many housed users of the day centres were older men who were vulnerable and isolated. They lived alone and had no relatives or friends to whom they could turn for help. Most had been homeless in the past.
Source: Maureen Crane, Ruby Fu, Phil Foley and Tony Warnes, The Role of Homeless Sector Day Centres in Supporting Housed Vulnerable People, Sheffield Institute for Studies on Ageing/University of Sheffield (0114 2226270)
Links: Report (pdf) | UKCOH press release
Date: 2005-Feb
A report contained an evaluation of the eight local housing options projects, which contributed to a national housing options programme for older people.
Source: Gail Mountain and Helen Buri, Report of the Evaluation of Pilot Local Housing Options Advice Services for Older People, Care & Repair England (0115 950 6500)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary (pdf)
Date: 2005-Feb
An article explored the barriers to providing genuine housing choice for adults with learning disabilities. Carers needed involvement, information and support during the development of housing plans.
Source: Laura Bowey, 'Assessing the barriers to achieving genuine housing choice for adults with a learning disability: The views of family carers and professionals', British Journal of Social Work, Volume 35 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2005-Jan
The government responded to a report by a committee of MPs on the housing needs of Gypsies and Travellers. It said that local authorities should do more to identify appropriate sites, so that Gypsies and Travellers could be more easily moved off 'problem' sites.
Source: Government Response to the ODPM Select Committee's Report on Gypsy and Traveller Sites, Cm 6465, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Response (pdf) | MPs report | ODPM press release
Date: 2005-Jan
