'Bedroom Tax' and 'Poverty Porn'

It’s been twelve months now since the removal of the spare room subsidy – or, as critics and the media dubbed it, the ‘Bedroom Tax’.

If the issue of the welfare system and council housing weren’t really in the public consciousness twelve months ago, they certainly are now.

Not council houses: the now infamous James Turner Street

In recent months we’ve seen the vitriol emanating from the Twittersphere and Fleet Street surrounding White Dee and her neighbours on ‘Benefits Street’ and, most recently, we’ve seen the return to our screens of ‘How to Get a Council House.’ Channel Four’s ‘shock-umentaries’ have, in fairness to them, elevated these issues to the national debate. But they’ve also, rather unhelpfully, reinforced the grossly unfair negative stereotypes which are lauded over council tenants and people who are on benefits.

I have to admit – I couldn’t bring myself to watch ‘Benefits Street’ - but it was impossible to escape the editorial jibes or internet forum debates about work-shy scroungers. Instead of indulging in what some commentators have dubbed ‘poverty porn’, I prefer to focus on making a difference and trying to improve the lives and homes of people who live in our city.

Instead of debating whether White Dee will stand for parliament – perhaps the narrative now needs to switch to how we can fix some of the root causes to these problems; the chronic housing shortage; the need for more jobs and apprenticeships and a sensible, grown-up discussion about mental health.

One of my colleagues met with our local newspaper, the Express & Star, last week to talk to them about the Bedroom Tax, one year on. The subsequent headline read ‘Dozens risk eviction in Wolverhampton over Bedroom Tax’. Sadly, the headline rings true.

 

Around 3,500 tenants were affected by the welfare changes in the city. Just 37 have failed to pay anything – that means nearly 99% of those who had to find extra rent for the first time, have, somehow, made some sort of payment. And we’re grateful for that. I’m amazed that we’ve been able to retain our position as one of the highest rent collecting authorities in the country; collecting more than 98% of the rent we’re owed. That in itself should show that the overwhelming majority of our tenants are paying their way. From talking to lots of the tenants I meet, I know that some of them have had to make some really difficult choices and sacrifices to find that extra cash.

 

We're working to help tenants manage their budgets

Sadly, just a few hundred have been able to, or chosen to, move since last April. There’s a mixture of reasons for that – the two main ones being a shortage of smaller homes and, quite simply, people don’t want to move. To some, council houses are a commodity or asset– but to those who live in them, it’s their home.

Now whether the ‘Bedroom Tax’ stays or goes – what we do know is that financially, things for lots of our tenants are going to get worse before they get better.

We’ve invested a lot of money in offering support and debt advice to tenants – but for some, the cycle of debt feels never-ending. We held a focus group with some tenants and we asked them about debt and where they’d go to for help; and still people were saying that pay day lenders were an easy way to get money. What we’re saying is – yes – but they’re an easy way to get into dire financial trouble too.

My plea to anyone who is struggling with their finances is to please ask someone for advice. If you’re a tenant, then come and see us. Or pop and see your local Citizens Advice Bureau. Or open an account with your local credit union. There is help out there…and it doesn’t cost a billion % APR either.

I read a lovely letter last week from a tenant who was thanking our Money SmartTeam for all the work they’d done with her to help turn her financial woes around. If only more people would do what she did and asked us for help.

So, we can talk about ‘Benefits Street’ or ‘How to Get a Council House’. We can take to Twitter to condemn those who are unfortunate enough to be unemployed, or who have mental health problems. We can talk about whether the Bedroom Tax should or shouldn’t be scrapped. But what I’d rather we talk about are the real reasons and problems behind this smokescreen of a so-called welfare system debate. Let’s talk sensibly about how we build more social and council homes, how we treat and support vulnerable people and families in our communities and how we help people break that vicious cycle of debt so they can rebuild for themselves and their families, a brighter future.

Anyway - I'd much rather here about the tenants who have got inspiring stories to tell...like Michelle...

Fuel Poverty Awareness week

If you live on the Somerset Levels I suspect you’ll disagree with this statement, but certainly in Wolverhampton, we’ve been quite lucky in the sense that it’s been a very mild winter this year.

I think I can count on one hand the number of mornings I’ve had to scrape the ice from my windscreen and our boiler repair teams don’t look quite as tired as they did two years ago when I think every boiler condenser pipe in the city froze over!

So why, even despite a relatively mild few months, are some people in our city still having to choose whether to ‘eat’ or ‘heat’?

The cost of living is clearly going to be a big topic of debate as the political parties gear up for next year’s General Election.

Without question, for thousands living in Wolverhampton – and millions of others across the UK – the cost of living is increasing, and the price hikes this winter from the ‘big six’ energy companies, is making a difficult situation even harder.

Last week we took part in National Fuel Poverty Awareness Day. In Wolverhampton – statistics suggest that an astounding 14,700 homes are still living in fuel poverty. That’s thousands of families with young children or vulnerable older people who are struggling to pay to heat their homes.

Picture of Councillor Reynolds with our
Climate Change Team

We’ve spent millions in recent years helping to make our housing stock warmer and more energy efficient. The Decent Homes work we’ve done on nearly 20,000 homes in the city has definitely helped, from loft and cavity wall insulation to photovoltaic cells on roofs (I know they’re not technically solar panels but it seems easier to call them that!).

Last week, our climate change team met up with a leading local councillor to encourage our tenants to take up our free home energy visits in a bid to save a few pounds on their energy bills.

They spoke with one tenant, Diane, who reckons she’s saving more than £200 a year on her fuel bills after we’d helped install solar panels on her roof and completed the insulation of her home. That’s actually a huge saving when you come to think of it. Couple that with other energy saving measures like new light bulbs and knocking the thermostat down a bit, and it all adds up.

But with the rising price of energy seemingly unstoppable, it just feels a shame that we risk wiping out those savings from the pockets of those who need it most.

We’ll continue to do our bit to make sure that our homes are as warm as they can be and that help is available to anyone who’s having to choose between eating and heating – perhaps it’s time energy companies did the same?

Proud to be a Best Company

Last week was one of my proudest as Chief Executive of Wolverhampton Homes.

For the second year running we’ve been named as one of the best not-for-profit organisations to work for in the UK in a list published by The Sunday Times and employee engagement specialists, Best Companies.

More than 900 UK-based companies took part in the Best Companies survey this year where employees were asked to rate the company they worked for through in-depth questionnaires.

Our first ever staff volunteering project last summer

Two and half years ago we started out on a new journey to make Wolverhampton Homes one of the best places to work for in the public sector. And last week, we were named as a two-star ‘outstanding’ company when it comes to employee engagement. We’re ranked as the 42^nd best not-for-profit company to work for and the 2^nd best ALMO (Arms Length Management Organisation) too.

There are plenty of blogs, websites, Twitter feeds and text books which talk about the virtues of good employee engagement. In fact, there are so many, I won’t bother trying to replicate them all here!

But, as a Chief Executive, what I do know is that in reality, it boils down to this; an engaged workforce who buy into the ethos of your company and who are proud of what you do will perform better.

• They’re less likely to be sick (our sickness rates are down to 6 days compared to 15 a few years ago!)
  
• They’re more likely to stay with you
  
• They tend to have less accidents (we lost just 29 days last year compared to 632 in 2006)
  
• You’re going to get new recruits who really want to work for you
  
• They’re likely to go that extra mile because they really believe in what it is you’re trying to do.

Plus – quite frankly, it’s the right thing to do.

Our employee engagement journey continues

Are we perfect? Of course we’re not. There’s still a long way to go and, ultimately, we’re here to serve our tenants and leaseholders and to deliver the great service they expect from us.

But one thing I do know – a disengaged workforce isn’t going to deliver that level of service.

So we’re a two-star ‘outstanding’ company and the 2^nd best ALMO to work for…and I’m immensely proud of my colleagues for helping us to achieve that. Their enthusiasm to get on board with what we’re trying to do is incredible.

I feel I should point out that whilst we’re 42^nd on the list (we were 40^th last time); to some it could look as if we’ve taken a step back. We most certainly haven’t. The important thing here is that we’ve improved on our overall scoring (going from one star to two) and if anything, shows that more companies are getting on board with the notion that effective employee engagement is good business sense. Importantly, our journey continues along the right trajectory.

For me, this isn’t rocket science and needn’t cost the earth. As long as you truly and authentically believe in it then it can make a huge difference. It’s about making people feel part of the wider vision, treating people fairly, with respect, and rewarding people when they do a good job. From my experience this isn’t anything to do with money either…in the public sector we can vouch for that! 

Sometimes the most powerful reward is simply two words…thank you.