Over two million foreign nationals excluded from social housing and benefits
After the June 30 deadline for EU nationals to apply for settled status in the UK, another tranche of the population is now prevented from renting accommodation, getting homelessness help or receiving benefits. EU citizens who have not applied to the EU settlement scheme (EUSS), together with those who have arrived since the deadline, are […]
Thousands of European nationals could miss out on housing and benefits
Time is running out! European nationals living in the UK have just a few weeks left to apply to the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) to regularise their status now that Brexit has brought an end to ‘free movement’ under previous EU laws. All European citizens living in the UK who come from EU countries […]
Ministers should have listened to Right to Rent criticism six years ago
It’s taken over five years but the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants has now won an argument that was championed from the start by CIH. Back in July 2013 the housing minister wrote to CIH’s chief executive setting out plans to deter ‘illegal’ immigrants by obliging private landlords to check the passport of […]
Will housing receive a ‘red tape bonus’ from Brexit?
Leaving the European Union is supposed to free us from red tape. Depending whether Brexit is hard or soft, it could give Britain more freedom to set its own rules. Will this be of any benefit to the housing sector? Let’s look at some of the possible changes. EU procurement rules are one example. Ending […]
The hostile environment: what social landlords need to know
The problems experienced by the Windrush generation highlight the effects of the “hostile environment” created by Theresa May when she was home secretary. Anyone needing rented housing is affected, alongside those going to hospital or applying for a job or bank account. Social housing applicants have long had to comply with eligibility rules but landlords […]
Five myths about migrants and housing
What do you know about migrants and where they live? Here are five things often said about migrants’ housing rights that are untrue or only partially true. Get the facts here. Migrants have a right to social housing New migrants from outside the EU aren’t eligible for social housing except in very limited circumstances (e.g. […]
How can housing organisations respond to Louise Casey’s review into integration?
As Dame Louise Casey’s independent review into opportunity and integration reveals the challenges facing the UK CIH’s senior policy advisor John Perry asks how housing organisations can contribute. Louise Casey asks some uncomfortable questions about Britain’s failure to integrate newcomers to the country. She’s not the first to have done so, but has produced the latest […]
John Perry lives in Masaya, Nicaragua where he works on