Homelessness prevention by Glasgow City Council

Referral-led PRS prevention team

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The context

Today’s PRS houses a wide diversity of tenants, and a growing number of families and minority ethnic groups. More than 30% of children in poor households now live in the sector. Some of these households are likely to have particularly high and tenure-specific needs for timely financial, welfare and debt advice and at times, housing support. In contrast to social tenants, their landlords are less likely to be well-informed on, or plugged into, local advice and support services.

2019 research from Shelter Scotlandxii found many Councils lacked understanding of the housing support needs of private renters, and were not confident setting priorities in cross-tenure housing support commissioning. Housing support referrals tended to be associated with move on from homelessness as opposed to early intervention to prevent it. In Glasgow, where almost a fifth of households rent privately, the City Council’s PRS Hub is taking a proactive, upstream approach to change that dynamic.

The intervention

The PRS Hub began as a short-term intervention in 2017. One officer was tasked with contacting families identified as subject to the benefit cap, to offer advice and support to maximise income and employability. The aims were to prevent child poverty and homelessness. An unexpected finding was private landlords, as well as tenants, engaged with advice and support. Many families were entitled to financial support they weren’t receiving. And landlords often showed leniency, once they knew support was in place.

Whilst the project had an initial welfare reform (benefit cap) focus, the officer quickly discerned much broader, unmet needs for advice and support - including for health, childcare, property condition and tenancy rights. The team was expanded to include property conditions officers. They assess homes, make landlords aware of issues and give time to resolve them before enforcement action is taken. That ensures when homelessness is prevented, the home the family continues to live in is of adequate standard.

The PRS Hub works by referral only. Over time it’s widened referral networks to include health teams (such as health visitors and community link workers) and social workers. This ensures services most likely to come across vulnerable families have both housing ‘on their radar’ and a team to refer into if a family in the PRS has a housing problem. The Hub’s focus is long-term sustainment. Workers take a case management approach, supporting each family holistically, and with no set time limit, on any issue which could undermine sustainment. They also support moves to alternative homes where there are no other options.

The outcome

In its first four years, the Hub assisted over 600 families in PRS, with a 100% engagement rate. Homelessness was prevented for 85% of households supported, either by sustaining the original tenancy or moving to an alternative tenancy prior to homelessness. For those in the first group, which comprise the great majority of all households, the team is assured both property and financial issues have been addressed.

The Hub estimates for each £1 spent on providing the service, almost £12 is saved to the public purse. Intervening early to intensively support families in extreme hardship can avoid the need for temporary accommodation and homelessness services. It also avoids the need for (and associated costs of) social work involvement with the same families.

Key insights

• PRS-specific advice and support services can make inroads where generic services don’t
• housing (especially tenure) isn’t always on the radar of services - so awareness raising with partners is key
• a great deal can be achieved to improve property management and standards working with private landlords as partners, whilst also ensuring enforcement action is taken where necessary

Find out more…

Pauline McGarry, PRS Housing & Welfare Hub Manager, Glasgow City Council
pauline.mcgarry@glasgow.gov.uk