Yesterday, Crisis members Ian and Wayne handed their open letter – signed by more than 5,000 people – addressed to the Housing Secretary Michael Gove, calling on the government to back new laws to stop rogue landlords exploiting people living in ‘exempt accommodation’.

An incredible 5,198 people signed the letter – a huge show of support for the campaign, for Ian and Wayne, and for everyone having a safe home that meets their needs.

Crisis members Ian and Wayne with Bob Blackman MP.

This is a big milestone in the Regulate the Rogues campaign and piles pressure on the government to back new a new Bill, coming to Parliament on 18 November, that will finally end exploitation in exempt accommodation.

If we come together, we can make sure this Bill passes.

Email your MP today to ask them to back the Bill to Regulate the Rogues on 18 November

Email your MP now

 

Ian and Wayne share their experiences

Wayne and Ian have both been homeless and lived in ‘exempt accommodation.’

This is shared housing for people with support needs. This can include people who have fled domestic abuse, have serious mental health conditions, or have been homeless.

The landlord was meant to provide them with a safe environment and support to help them move on with their lives, out of homelessness.

Instead, they had to deal with abuse, bullying, and were forced to live in dirty, cramped and poor-quality housing with hardly any support. They felt trapped in dangerous situations with no way out

Instead, they had to deal with abuse, bullying, and were forced to live in dirty, cramped and poor-quality housing with hardly any support. They felt trapped in dangerous situations with no way out.

No one should have to face this. Yet this is happening to people all across England

While there are many good providers of exempt accommodation who are genuinely offering support to those who need it, an increasing number of rogue landlords are exploiting the system for profit, leaving people in dangerous living conditions with little to no support.

Our Regulate the Rogues campaign is calling for new laws to stop this exploitation, root out rogue landlords and protect people living in exempt accommodation.

Today, Wayne and Ian had the opportunity to share their experiences directly with MPs. The effect was powerful.

Wayne said: “I was naive when I went in there. I thought supported accommodation meant I'd get support. Things started to go wrong instantly. I've been to several exempt accommodations. And throughout them all, it's an absolute disaster. There's nowhere to turn to.”

What’s next?

We now have a golden opportunity to win this campaign.

There's a Private Members’ Bill, introduced by Bob Blackman MP, coming to Parliament on 18 November that will finally end this scandal – but we need MPs to back it too.

The Bill will force out rogue landlords, give councils powers to enforce standards and make sure tenants get the support they need to rebuild their lives

Just a couple of days ago, Michael Gove, the new Housing Secretary, said the government 'wants to work with' Crisis and Bob Blackman MP 'in order to solve the problem' of rogue landlords exploiting people living in exempt accommodation.

This is a huge positive step, and your support has been critical to getting us to this stage; without thousands of you signing the letter, the government wouldn’t have indicated they back our efforts at reform. So, thank you.

Together, we’ve had success in Parliament before. With your support, we were able to help pass the Homelessness Reduction Act – the biggest change to homelessness legislation in forty years – in 2017, and get MPs to vote to scrap the Vagrancy Act earlier this year.

If we come together, we can make sure this Bill passes too.

Email your MP today to ask them to back the Bill to Regulate the Rogues on 18 November

Email your MP now