Hi A couple of weeks ago I forwarded bulletin http://www.ucadvice.co.uk/housing-associations/2014/01/housing-benefit-lha-suspension-cancellation-and-associated-rent-arrears highlighting the fact, tenants are accruing rent arrears unnecessarily, due to complications in Housing Benefit (LHA) and Bedroom Tax administration between councils and DWP. The note obviously struck a chord with one of my retainer clients who used the information…

Hi, Court of Appeal Judges, this morning (21st Feb), ruled the court could not intervene in the Government’s housing benefit changes – most commonly referred to as the “bedroom tax” They also rejected claims that the ”benefit cap” violates human rights laws and the common law because of its impact…

Hi The Government’s “Bedroom Tax” woes continue as yet another first-tier tribunal, this time in Liverpool, finds imposing the bedroom tax on a father who claimed he needed a second room to accommodate his teenage daughter when she stays with him was an infringement of his human rights. Because the…

Good morning, I’m sure you’re already aware of the recently reported Upper-tier Tribunal Decision CH/140/2013 concerning Bolton BC and its potential impact on Bedroom Tax challenges because the Judge determined a lounge could be treated as a bedroom for the purposes of the size criteria. Some newspaper headlines and website…

Good morning, Hard on the heels of Tuesday’s surprise announcement, DWP has released news of yet further developments in the North West of England. It has announced, Universal Credit eligibility will extend to single people and couples, with the usual pre-conditions, ensuring only the simplest of cases can claim. The…

Good morning, One of my recent bulletins http://www.ucadvice.co.uk/housing-associations/2014/04/universal-credit– commented on the DWP announcement that its Universal Credit would be rolled out to 12 new council districts, starting from June 2014. Since then I’ve heard from a number of my RSL and Private Sector clients that they’ve received notification, from their respective councils, of notional…

Hi Universal Credit delivery has now been extended to another 6 Pathfinder sites and this process will incrementally progress to other districts, throughout the UK. The “claimant commitment” and associated “benefit sanctions” are already being rolled out to 20,000 Job Centres, creating major problems for both tenants and landlords alike because of sanctions…

Hi, In recent months, landlords have expressed increasing concern over the introduction of Universal Credit but, argues Lord David Freud, the changes he’s promoting should actually make their lives easier. In an interview with Inside Housing he sends out a message to landlords – “Don’t be afraid”! http://www.insidehousing.co.uk/home/blogs/don%E2%80%99t-be-afraid/7002258.article So will…

Hi DWP has just published a Landlords’ booklet, which adopts a Q & A format, designed to explain to Landlords all of the key issues in relation to Universal Credit. Although the publication is new, most, if not all of the information, has previously been provided in documents like Landlords Managed Payments (see http://www.ucadvice.co.uk/housing-associations/2013/11/dwp-pubish—landlords-managed-payments-of-uc-housing-elelment)…

Hi, DWP have just issued the latest statisitcs on the rollout of Universal Credit in the various Pathfinder sites. Almost all of the data applies to those sites in Ashton-under-lyne (first to go live) followed by Oldham, Warrington and Wigan. Six further sites are rolling out between October and spring…