Technical Notes 2022, Issue 71 - COVID19 Tenant Grant Fund

The purpose of this technical note is to provide an update on the success of the Council’s COVID19 Tenant Grant Fund which was set up on 18 October 2022 to prevent evictions as a result of COVID19 related rent arrears.

BACKGROUND/MAIN ISSUES  

1.1      On the 23 June 2021 the Deputy First Minister announced a £10m Tenant Grant Fund as a way of preventing evictions as a result of COVID-19 related rent arrears.  Ministers and COSLA Leaders agreed to distribute revenue funding of £10m in the 2021/2022 financial year across local authorities.

1.2      On 10 September 2021 the Council received confirmation of the award; £105k to prevent homelessness and £6k to administer the fund.   

1.3      In summary:   

• This new intervention aimed to complement the range of options local authorities already use to prevent homelessness. It was also intended to be linked to the existing pre-action requirements for rent arrears in both the social and private rented sectors; and
• The focus of the new grant funding was to support those most at risk of homelessness and support an agreement between the landlord and tenant to prevent homelessness.

1.4       The following summarises where the grant could and could not, be paid;

• The grant was available to all tenants living in the private and social rented sector at risk of homelessness, administered by local authorities.
• Landlords were required to demonstrate that they were complying with the pre-action requirements for rent arrears and agree not to progress a repossession on the basis of rent arrears where the grant was paid and the tenant meets all future agreed rent and repayment obligations.
• The grant was specifically to help repay rent arrears that have arisen due to the Coronavirus pandemic between 23 March 2020 and 9 August 2021.
• Arrears before 23 March 2020 could not be covered.
• Arrears not relating to COVID19 could not be covered.
• Arrears after 9 August 2021 (based on the current strategic framework) could only be covered in exceptional circumstances, where the local authority was satisfied that arrears relate to continued impact of the pandemic restrictions.
• Any payment made was at the discretion of the Homelessness and Prevention Team.
• Once budget was exhausted, no further money was available.

1.5       Following confirmation of the funding, the Council’s Homelessness and Prevention Team shared information about the fund and how to apply with the Council’s Housing Department, Housing Associations and Private Landlords/Agents in the area. Information was provided to partner agencies such as Health and Social Care Partnership and housing support providers.

1.6       To ensure that the application process was streamlined and easy to access, the Homelessness and Prevention Team developed a referral form to capture the key information required.  Applications were received from 18 October 2021 onwards until March 2022.

1.7       Following receipt of a referral, the Homelessness Team carried out a number of checks to ensure that the household met the criteria and where appropriate, appointments were arranged to discuss the referral and/or offer additional support where appropriate.  

1.8       Following the referral and advice, landlords and tenants were asked to agree the terms of the grant, once agreed, any contribution towards the arrears was paid straight to the rent account via transfer/BACS.

1.9       As part of current reporting mechanisms in place, each appointment was recorded as a PREVENT1 case and reported to the Scottish Government on a quarterly basis.  In addition to PREVENT1 reports, the Council has returned monitoring data to the Scottish Government on 31 December 2021 and 31 March 2022 as requested.  

2.         Awards

2.1       Since 18 October 2021; 90 grants have been awarded to the value of       £104, 269.54.  At the point of referral, the total arrears accrued totalled £109k, some of which did not relate to the pandemic. Table 1 below provides a summary by tenure of the grants awarded.

2.2       All households referred to the Homelessness and Prevention Team received assistance from the fund.  Payments cleared all of the COVID19 related arrears.  Most households had accrued arrears under £1500 (73%).  The table below provides a summary of the grants awarded by value and tenancy type.

2.3       The table below provides a summary of the length of time in their tenancy.

2.4       Of the 90 households, 60 (67%) of the households had moved into their tenancies during the pandemic.  Most reported that lockdown had a significant impact on their ability to provide evidence to the Department for Work and Pensions to allow them to claim relevant benefits.  Some reported that they had been unable to move into their new homes at the start of their tenancy due to extended waiting times for items from the Scottish Welfare Fund.     

2.5       Of the 30 households who have been in their tenancies longer than 2 years, very few of the households had accrued arrears prior to the pandemic.  Many of these households had applied for assistance from other funds including welfare benefits to assist them to reduce their arrears.

2.6       The main reasons for arrears was due to changes in the household’s income as a result of reduced hours, unemployment and health reasons.  Although most households had applied for other grants and financial assistance via Universal Credit, some households were not eligible to apply due to their circumstances at the time.

2.7       All households referred had agreed a repayment arrangement with their landlord to pay back arrears accrued.  Each household advised during their interview, that in order to meet their rent payment and contribution towards their arrears it was a struggle and an addition worry for them each month.  Many had relied on foodbanks, donations/loans from family and cut back on essential items to enable them to keep their payments up to date.  Of the 90 households, 68 were making personal contributions to pay arrears and 22 had agreed that their monthly award from their universal credit would be reduced.

2.8       A majority of households applying for the grant were single person households; 63 (70%) of the 90 households.  The table below provides a summary of the household composition of households.

2.9       Of the 23 households with children; 18 were lone parent households and 5 were couples with children.  Across all households there were 43 children in total. Of the 23 households; 18 had more than 1 child.

2.10    It was evident from the referrals that each household had been provided with relevant advice from their landlord with regards:

            - tenancy sustainment

            - income maximisation

            - rent payment methods/repayment arrangements

            - welfare benefit advice

            - budgeting

            - housing support 

            - referral/sign posting to other support providers such as CAB, Job Centre Plus, utility companies. Health and Social Care Partnership, GP’s, Education etc.

2.11    Throughout the process, the Homelessness and Prevention Team has received positive feedback from landlords referring to the fund, it has been noted that:

            - the referral process was quick and easy to use;

            - payments were made quickly;

            - the grant has assisted households to sustain their tenancies.

2.12    As a direct result of the fund, none of the 90 households made a homelessness application. 

3.         2022/23 Challenges

3.1       Due to the pandemic, a number of legislative changes have been introduced i.e. an eviction ban and extended notice timescales were introduced in the private rented sector and this was in place until 31 March 2022.    

3.2       There is a possibility that the Council’s Homelessness Team will see an increase in homelessness presentations in the private sector from 1 April 2022 onwards.  It is unclear at this time, if further funding will be given for 2022/23 to assist those who were not at risk of becoming homelessness as these restrictions are relaxed.