Something deeply worrying has happened to our private rented market.
Since 2011, as benefits have been cut back, a black hole has started to appear in our welfare system for private renters. This black hole is the widening gap between housing benefit and rents at the very cheapest end of the private rental market. The black hole means rents become completely out of reach for anyone on low earnings. It means more people are made homeless, more children are stuck … Read more
In the aftermath of the Grenfell tragedy, the priority is to find secure, affordable homes for survivors in their community, and make sure they have all the support they need to move forward with their lives. It is encouraging to see homes starting to come forward, with 68 affordable homes in Kensington allocated for survivors so far.
But these are not additional homes. They are pre-existing affordable blocks fast-tracked and reserved for Grenfell families. And so there is a broader … Read more