TO single mother who homeless has said that he cannot apply social housing because she is in debt.

Orla (not her real name) said Yo that she and her little daughter cannot escape their temporary accommodationwhich he described as a “one-room prison” in “a run-down 1950s block” in Greater Manchester.

This 26-year-old hospitality worker, who wanted to remain anonymous, is affected by a little-known rule that excludes indebted people from accessing social housing.

Orla has been trapped in temporary accommodation for four years.

Last week Yo revealed that Nearly 3,800 households, including families, are prohibited from applying for a permanent place to live. through your local council due to the rule.

Councilor Adam Hug, housing spokesperson for the Local Government Association, said local authorities need to “develop solutions that make the most of their scarce social housing stock”.

“This may include qualifying criteria to exclude people who, for example, are in current or previous rent arrears,” Hug said, adding that “more and more councils are having to make difficult decisions” due to a shortage of social housing.

There is 1.29 million households on social housing waiting lists across England.

Hug said councils “have the discretion not to apply these policies in exceptional circumstances”.

Orla was evicted by a private landlord in June 2021 after falling behind on rent while pregnant. She is desperate to find a permanent home.

Read next

The young woman in care, who has moved 10 times since she was 17, said: “I don’t want to live like this for the rest of my life.”

Before her daughter was born at the end of 2021, Orla lived in a privately rented property costing £400 a month. She “made up” her rent by working no hours, including a job at a burger joint.

But work had been “drying up” since the pandemic and the restaurant was offering fewer shifts.

Having less income, she ended up behind on rent. He also claimed there was a delay in his housing benefit, which supplemented his income.

At the time of her eviction, Orla had rent arrears worth £2,400. Her council placed her in emergency temporary accommodation when she became homeless.

Although he is paying off his debt, Orla said he cannot yet submit offers for social housing until his council is satisfied he has paid enough.

Temporary accommodation is emergency accommodation that your council offers to people who become homeless. can include hostels, B&Bs and converted office blocks.

It may not always be safe for children. Yo has previously reported that there is a correlation between unexpected infant deaths and temporary housing.

Katherine Brickell, a professor of urban studies at King’s College London, said more than 200 local authorities in England have a policy that disqualifies potential tenants from bidding for social housing if they have rent arrears. Others deprioritize potential tenants on bidding lists if they have rent arrears.

Professor Brickell, who carried out the research into the number of families affected by the debt rule, previously described it as a “Kafkaesque nightmare”.

Under the Freedom of Information Act, it found that among the 3,800 households affected, more than 1,600 were families with children.

Francesca Albanese, executive director of policy and social change at homelessness charity Crisis, said: “It is a difficult and bitter pill to swallow to think that too many families are trapped in temporary accommodation with no way out.”

Across the UK, rents are currently rising by 8.6 percent. This means that the cost of private services rent It is rising faster than the inflation rate, which is 1.7 percent.

Albanese said that “the increase in rents and the greater cost of living pressures “They are trapping families in a cycle of homelessness.”

“With little or no social housing available, many are forced into debt and end up in temporary accommodation. Unable to pay their debts, families are often unable to move and in some cases are even prevented from bidding for social housing.”

Crisis urged councils to “implement measures to help households pay their debts in a way they can afford and leave homelessness behind”.

Orla said she had fallen behind on paying her council tax and other bills as she prioritizes paying rent arrears to bidding on a permanent council house.

He said he “can’t face” opening letters demanding payment, adding: “I don’t know why they are sending me these letters because I don’t have enough money to live on.”

Professor Brickell said “debt is a key factor in women becoming homeless” as well as “a key reason why women end up stuck on the streets”.

“Housing allocation policies that lack nuance and compassion,” he added.

Read next

Shared Health, a organization who supports homeless families in Greater Manchester, including Orla, said: “It is astonishing that relatively small amounts of debt are keeping families and children stuck living in temporary accommodation.”

Dr Laura Neilson, GP and chief executive of Shared Health, added: “We are spending huge amounts of public money on expensive and inadequate housing. “It is illogical that for £500 of debt, some families are trapped in a system that costs millions and also causes suffering and hardship.”

The temporary accommodation bill for local authorities in England has exceeded £1.7bn a year.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government described Professor Brickell’s findings as “incredibly worrying”.

A spokesperson urged “councils to be reasonable when making difficult decisions about (housing) allocation”, adding that the Government “will take these findings into account and consider them as part of our plans to ensure everyone has access to support.” that they need.”

Before the Budget, the Government announced a An additional 500 million pounds to build “affordable” housing. However, so far no funding has been announced to directly help councils with temporary accommodation bills.

The Local Government Association is calling on the Government to increase the support available to councils and increase “the powers and resources” they have to build truly affordable housing.