FAO
Housing, Income & Financial Inclusion Managers

I write to draw your attention to a number of forthcoming Universal Credit training events in Aberdeen, Newcastle, Leeds and Liverpool, specifically relating to the expansion of Natural and Managed Migration and the impact this could have on your “working age” tenants,…

Good morning

The House of Commons Library published its latest report, on 14th June 2019, focused on the problems, full and part-time “workers” can experience because of the way DWP assesses earnings and other income, received during the course of their monthly Benefit Assessment Period.

Problems arise when more…

Good morning

I’m sure, like me, you’ll not have been surprised by DWP’s latest update (24th April) on the promised, SRS Landlord Portal solution to the annual rent uprating exercise. Yet another delay and broken commitment!

Why?

DWP’s explanation – “the delivery of a process that meets your needs continues…

Morning

I’ve just responded to a First-tier Tribunal Judge’s, Directions Notice, on behalf of my Housing Association client and one of its disabled tenants. The tenant is of “working age” who was receiving ESA (IR), PIP and Housing Benefit, until February 2018, when he agreed to an exchange with another…

Good morning

For the 2nd time in less than 1 year, DWP’s Universal Credit “Migration” rules, relating to severely disabled claimants, have been ruled “discriminatory” by the High Court.

In an earlier bulletin I explained how two appellants, referred to as TP & AR, had secured compensation for the…

Good morning

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) recently published its report – “The Computer says “No!”

The report examines DWP “decision making” and, in particular, the associated quality of “ benefit notifications” sent to claimants. It includes case studies and analysis, from CPAG, which highlight serious misgivings about the…

Good morning

The “Managed” or forced migration of a further 3 million “legacy benefit” (e.g. JSA, ESA, Housing Benefit, Tax Credits) claimants to Universal Credit starts in Harrogate from July 2019, expanding to other (yet unannounced) areas during the next 12 months. Currently, there are more than 2 million recipients…

Afternoon

As you may already have gathered, the first stage of the Universal Credit, rent updating exercise, has not gone as well as hoped. I discovered this when several of my clients started emailing and phoning on Tuesday, having received, in some cases, 200+ demands for verification via their portals…

Good morning

More than 5 years after Universal Credit was first launched, SRS landlords are still desperately waiting for DWP to produce a satisfactory automated solution to the annual rent up-rating exercise, something they’ve been accustomed to via Councils and Housing Benefit. DWP published its latest guidance and related…

Good morning

One of my Housing Association clients notified me, just the other day, they’d won a Housing Benefit dispute with their local council, producing a £3000 Housing Benefit back-payment, wiping out their tenant’s rent arrears and, just as importantly, preventing her premature migration to Universal Credit, which would have…