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As part of our programme of Universal Credit & Housing benefit-related courses, we have arranged three new dates, two of which will be held in Glasgow and one in Edinburgh. Each course is designed to improve the knowledge of frontline staff, tasked with assisting tenants to tackle…

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Our clients at Albyn Housing Association have demonstrated, for the 2nd time in recent months, the importance of assisting tenants to maximise entitlement to housing costs. Details of the earlier case can be found here

On this occasion, a Housing Officer (HO) assisted a tenant in claiming…

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This article was published yesterday in Landlordzone News. It concerns a private landlord operating in the Manchester area, whose tenant failed to report Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rent increases following the issue of Section 13 (rent increase) notices in 2020 and 2024, when the Government increased the…

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The April 2025 Benefits Uprating order will impact your tenants’ personal benefit entitlement and housing costs. While limited in scope, the rises will be welcomed, as many families have struggled to cope with rising prices.

Those of pensionable age will experience a rise of 4.1% to their state…

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Most Council and Housing Association rent control teams rely, at least partially, on rent deductions (Third-Party Payments) or the threat of them being applied, from their tenants’ state benefits, to help manage rent arrears and minimise the need for repossession actions. Some tenants accrue multiple debts that could…

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My clients at Key Housing provide quality “Supported Housing” to vulnerable tenants throughout Scotland. Most tenants require assistance completing and submitting their Housing Benefits claims to council departments. Overall, the process, honed over many years, works well, because Key’s staff have developed effective working partnerships with the various benefit…

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Last week, I represented my client Miss X at a First-tier tribunal, concerning DWP’s refusal to award “housing costs” for the property she occupied, and which was purchased, in September 2023, specifically for her use by her parents. Her need for accommodation started in…

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Several website members have enquired about the recent High Court Judgement of R (Roberts) v Sec of State for W & Ps [2025] EWHC51 (Admin) and asked, to what extent, if any, the judgement might affect their ability to secure Managed Payments for the monthly rental charge, and…

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My last bulletin highlighted DWP’s plans to add 3,100 staff to its Enhanced Review team, bringing the total to nearly 6,000 strong. As explained, it intends to review 8 million current awards of Universal Credit, starting from April 2025, in the hope it can stem the rise…

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The Autumn Budget, delivered by Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, was disappointing for many benefit claimants, particularly those under pensionable age (66), with the news of April 2025 increases being pegged at just 1.7% for benefits like Universal Credit, PIP, ESA, and Child Benefit.

Pensioners fared better with both State…