1. Chloe Fletcher NFA Policy Director
The Policy Landscape
Chloe Fletcher
NFA Policy Director

2. The New World General Election 2017! Housing White Paper
Social Housing Rent policy
Housing and Planning Act
Homelessness
Welfare Reform
UC roll out
Supported Housing
BREXIT
Housing and Planning Act - – what are we still waiting for?
Welfare Reform – what’s coming?
UC roll out – issues still to be resolved
Supported Housing – new funding regime?

3. General Election 2017
Snap election called last week for 8th June 2017.
NFA has already prepared its election manifesto to try to influence all of the main political party’s manifestos on council housing and welfare reform.
Sent out to key people writing manifestos and getting messages out via social media, press and briefings.

4. General Election 2017 Key NFA asks: New Affordable Homes
Freedoms and flexibilities on HRA to build more homes
Sustainable social rent policy
Grant for social housing to help save money on welfare bill
Welfare Reform
Reforms to UC
Reversing recent welfare cuts
Cut the link between LHA rates and social rents

5. General Election 2017 Energy Efficiency & Fuel Poverty
Clear long term plan for energy efficiency targets for housing with funding programme
Short term action on fuel poverty for poorest
Private Rented Sector
Improvements to private rented sector and role for ALMOs in bringing up standards
Health & Housing
More joining up of health and housing budgets
Make housing a statutory partner on health and well being boards
Tackling Worklessness
Improving work programme and supporting ALMOs’ engagement with it

6. The Labour Party
“We will build…at least half a million council homes through our public investment strategy” “We will rebuild and transform Britain by building council homes and homes that first time buyers can afford”
Jeremy Corbyn’s promises in election campaign for labour

7. The Liberal Democrats
“a national emergency in housing” “an all-out assault on social and affordable housing at the very time when those homes are needed most” “The Liberal Democrat vision is…of empowering councils to manage their housing stock effectively, enabling them to borrow what they can and build what they need”
Tim Farron’s speech during the Housing and Planning Bill debates

8. The Conservative Party
Fixing our broken housing market

9. The Housing White Paper
Focuses on planning measures to speed up the delivery of new homes across all tenures.
No detail on how to deliver more affordable/social housing but states that:
“Local authorities’ role in delivering new housing goes beyond using their planning powers. They also have an important role in delivering homes themselves.”

10. The Housing White Paper
Planning
Changes to rules to try to speed up the process and increase numbers of homes built.
A consultation on changes to the National Planning Policy Framework so that local authorities work together to meet housing requirements across authority boundaries.
Enabling spatial development strategies, produced by new combined authorities or elected Mayors, to allocate strategic sites.

11. The Housing White Paper
Planning
Consultation on a standardised approach to assessing housing requirements.
Local planning authorities to be expected to have clear policies for addressing the housing requirements of groups with particular needs, such as older and disabled people.
Giving much stronger support for sites that provide affordable homes for local people.

12. The Housing White Paper
Planning
Increase for planning fees by 20% if committed to investing it in the planning department. A possible further 20% increase for those delivering the homes their communities need.
£25m for ambitious authorities in areas of high housing need to plan for new homes and infrastructure.
A new housing delivery test to ensure that local authorities and wider interests are held accountable.

13. The Housing White Paper
Social Housing
Homes and Communities Agency will be relaunched as Homes England with a clear purpose: ‘To make a home within reach for everyone’.
The Social Housing Regulator will become more independent and a stand-alone body.
Ministers will ensure that housing associations belong in the private sector and are de-classified asap.
Government welcomes innovation & local housing companies but wants to ensure tenants receive equivalent of RTB if appropriate.
Confirms recent shift in housing policy away from just home ownership towards a more mixed tenure approach.

14. The Housing White Paper
The Housing Market
Seeks to encourage more build to rent through institutional investors.
Encourages family-friendly tenancies of three or more years in private rented sector.
Starter homes to be targeted to h/h with an income of less than £80,000 (£90,000 for London) and a mortgage to stop cash buyers. A 15 year repayment.
Housing sites to deliver a minimum of 10% affordable home ownership units.

15. The Housing White Paper
Council House Building
“DCLG will work with local authorities to understand all the options for increasing the supply of affordable housing”
and
“Ministers are interested in the scope for bespoke housing deals with authorities in high demand areas, which have a genuine ambition to build.”

16. The Housing White Paper
Bespoke HRA deals
Made a joint submission in December 2016 for freedoms and flexibilities for councils for new build

17. The Housing White Paper
Bespoke HRA deals
The main high level policy areas in which changes are proposed are:
flexibilities in borrowing caps
greater stability and certainty of rental income
better use of receipts following right to buy.
We are urging the government to:
consider the proposals and examples in this paper, and
launch a pilot scheme to enable councils to make bids to build target quantities of new homes that would not otherwise be built, based on specific agreements as to which national rules might be modified.
NFA part of on-going discussions with DCLG officials and the Housing Minister around possible deals/bids to increase housing delivery via the HRA.

18. Social Housing Rent Policy
Acknowledged the issue on the rent cut of 1% but said in will remain in place until 2020.
They will “set out, in due course, a rent policy for social housing landlords for the period beyond 2020.
NFA and ARCH to survey members on points of principle and approach for council rents to make submission before the Autumn Budget.

19. The Housing and Planning Act 2016
Implementing the Right to Buy on a voluntary basis
January 2016 five HAs invited to take part in a pilot scheme: L&Q, Riverside, Saffron, Sovereign, Thames Valley Housing.
2016 Autumn Statement the Chancellor announced £200m of funding for a new regional pilot of the VRTB scheme: 
For one year and will test one for one replacement, portability and the VRTB guidance jointly designed by housing associations, the NHF and Government.
Likely to be in West Midlands

20. The Housing and Planning Act 2016
Reducing Regulation from 6 April 2017:
RP’s will no longer have to seek HCA consent before changing their objects or restructuring
RP’s will no longer need HCA consent to sell properties or charge them for security
RP’s will be required to notify the HCA of certain constitutional changes, restructures and disposals
The HCA will only appoint board members and managers, where there has been a breach of legal requirements

21. The Housing and Planning Act 2016
Reducing Local Authority influence over RPs:
The current proposals which are as follows:
LA nominated membership on RP Boards will be limited to a maximum of 24%
Decisions on special resolutions will require a majority of no more than 75% (takes away “LA veto”)
LA nominated members cannot be Chair of the RP
Removal of “Golden Share” provisions
To exclude ALMO RPs from these measures
Require Parliamentary approval (was) likely this summer.

22. Housing and Planning Act 2016
High Income Social Tenants: Pay to Stay

23. Housing and Planning Act 2016
Vacant High Value Local Authority Housing
(Was) still going to be implemented.
Councils have “duty to consider selling off high value empty properties” be required to make payments to Government on that basis.
Issues:
What will count as a high value void?
What exemptions might there be?
Taking away the control and local decision making that self-financing gave us.
Impact on new build.
What is left to come?

24. Housing and Planning Act 2016
End of Lifetime Secure Tenancies
New tenancies and people other than a spouse or partner who inherit a secure tenancy.
Councils will have to offer fixed-term lets of between 2 and 10 years.
There will be some exemptions to this for example:
Households with children can be given a fixed term tenancy until their youngest child reaches 19.
Existing tenants will be protected if they are made to transfer to another home by the landlord.
Councils will be able to grant a secure tenancy in some other circumstances, to be set out in regulations.

25. Housing and Planning Act 2016
End of Lifetime Secure Tenancies
Councils will then have to review each tenancy at the end of its term to decide whether to grant a new tenancy or recover possession.
Some councils and ALMOs have already introduced fixed term tenancies on a voluntary basis.
The NFA held a seminar last autumn to share good practice but not heard any more from DCLG recently.

26. Homelessness Bill/Act 2017
Bob Blackman MP - private members bill.
Waiting for Royal Assent …
Will require earlier intervention by councils to prevent homelessness.
Councils to start assessing someone at risk of being made homeless 56 days before losing their home.
Requires councils to provide advice and help to all affected, not just those protected under existing laws.
£61m to councils to meet the costs incurred.
Lord Porter LGA
“It is crucial that the government recognise and address the wider factors that are increasing homelessness, such as the lack of affordable housing and welfare reforms”

27. Welfare Reform The household benefit cap
Was reduced from £500 p/w for a family and £350 p/w for a single person with no children to £385 p/w for a family and £258 p/w with slightly higher thresholds for London.
More larger families affected across England now.
Any household which receives more than the limit has their Housing Benefit reduced by the amount which exceeds the cap.

28. Welfare Reform
Social security benefits and tax credits have been frozen in cash terms for four tax years since April 2016.
The child element of Universal Credit will be limited to two children or qualifying young persons for those born after April 2017.
Tougher work focused requirements for young UC claimants and those with young children.

29. Welfare Reform 18 – 21 year olds
From 1 April 2017, some 18 to 21 year olds claiming UC will not get the housing element.
Only applies in UC full service areas.
Exemptions:
people receiving UC housing costs prior to April 2017
certain vulnerable people
people unable to live with their parents
those claiming as a couple
people who are not subject to all work-related requirements for receiving Universal Credit
people who are in work, subject to minimum earnings
people who have recently left work, subject to minimum earnings

30. Welfare Reform LHA rates in the social sector
The amount of rent that Housing Benefit will cover in the social sector will be capped to the relevant Local Housing Allowance.
This will apply to tenancies signed after 1 April 2016, with Housing Benefit entitlement changing from 1 April 2018 onwards.
This will include the Shared Accommodation Rate for single claimants under 35 who do not have dependent children.
Additional Discretionary Housing Payment funding will be made available to local authorities to protect the most vulnerable.

31. Roll out of Universal Credit
The full Universal Credit service for all claimants continues to rollout nationally, to be complete by September 2018.
NFA/ARCH Welfare Reform Surveys showing some alarming trends:
September 2016:
86% those tenants who were already receiving UC were in arrears
44% were subject to an alternative payment arrangement (APA)
Working with DWP Ministers and officials to try to get improvements.

32. Roll out of Universal Credit
Landlords not receiving timely notifications of tenants going on to Universal Credit (UC).
Claimants experiencing hardship while waiting for their first payment.
Payments of UC being delayed.
The housing element of UC being calculated incorrectly, or omitted entirely.

33. Roll out of Universal Credit
NFA and ARCH are lobbying for UC roll out to be suspended until:
DWP improves its processes (faster/more accurate processing of applications and payments)
better training for Job Centre Plus staff, to improve understanding of housing issues
Social landlords having more control over APAs (roll out of Trusted Partner pilot with resources)
Better communication between landlords and DWP

34. Supported Housing
Deferred the application of LHA rates for supported housing until 2019/20 when they plan to bring in a new funding model.
1% rent reduction will now be applied to all supported and sheltered schemes for the next 3 years. 
This will apply to all residents from 2019 not just new tenants and will be applied retrospectively.   
DWP and DCLG consulted on new funding regime earlier this year –13th February 2017.
Waiting for the detail of new model (was) to be set out in a Green Paper this Spring.

35. BREXIT 29th March invoked Article 50 and started EU exit process.
Key issues for policy context:
How the economy responds over the negotiating period.
How issues following on from Brexit will play out especially in devolved nations – Scotland/N. Ireland and impact on England and Wales.
Likelihood of parliamentary time being taken up with BREXIT issues – choosing which EU laws to keep and which to amend.
Impact on housing market and public finances.
Reaction of private housebuilders and market for o/o and shared ownership products impact on development programme. Lack of investment or calming down and business as usual?

36. The Challenges Ahead Engaged with civil servants at DCLG.
Written to Minister with ARCH for a joint meeting.
Submission to the Housing and Planning Bill Committee.
Briefings to MPs and Peers on at the various stages.
Meetings with supportive MPs and Peers to try to get amendments to the Bill.

37. NATIONAL FEDERATION OF ALMOs