to be furious that my long-term disabled sister has just been told she will have to pay the bedroom tax?

[ElectricSheep]

She has been battling with a very severe disability all of her life. Everyday is a struggle for her.

Twenty years ago after a long stay in hospital she was offered a 2 bedroom council flat so that she could be near us - her family - so that we can care for her and support her.

She knows she can never work again. Her consultant advised against it and it is just not a practical option.

And now she is expected to pay about 7% of her income in bedroom tax because the council gave her 2 bedrooms. She didn't ask for 2 bedrooms, it's all they had available. They can't offer her 1 bedroom and anyway moving would much more difficult for her than anyone else.

I'm so furious. On the day the Govt spend £10 million+ on a very controversial funeral they have just made life even more difficult and miserable for my brave, vulnerable sister. Bastards.

This sucks so much my i know a load of people effected by this I am lucky enough that although I am in a council flat I am not effected, could your sister not try for a mutual exchange with a family who may be stuck in a 1 bedroom flat and are needing a 2? Where I am there are sites for council/ housing association tenants. I hope your appeal works but i doubt it as I hear even foster parents (that are required to have a spare bedroom for foster kids staying) are also lumped into this

Here's an article from Inside Housing re: lodgers . I wouldn't want a lodger either but if I couldn't cope on my income then it would be an option.

Now why don't you actually read that article, you will discover it says exactly what I have just pointed out.

madbengal the govt has backtracked on foster carers fortunately

I would suggest that the sister gets advice from her landlord to see if they can help - most will be massively sympathetic to people in this situation.

I work in Housing and we have 900 families affected by this

Here's the DWP Factsheet on renting out spare rooms. It looks like people will be able to keep the first £20 of the rent the lodger pays them, to offset the bedroom tax. Above £20, benefits will be impacted

I think that if we, as a society, are expecting the most vulnerable members to take in lodgers in order to make ends meet, then we are in a very, very bad place indeed.

do you really think it's practical for disabled people to take in lodgers?

Sockreturningpixie no you're describing the current situation - this is changing in October and the income from lodgers will no longer lead to loss of benefit

I pity your caseload of tenants then fortyplus, if the only advice you can offer them is to take on a lodger

Madbengal,

The most recent info on who is subject to the new rule and who isant automatically exempts ONLY

Pensioners and convicted sex offenders.

Those with significantly disabled children can apply to have there circumstances looked at and possibly exempted but there is no obligation to exempt.

If I recall correctly foster carers who actually have a foster child using the room will also be able to apply for exemption. ( but its possible I may have dreamt that bit and its wishful thinking)

Funny that seen as it hasn't been included in any of the uc docs as anything other than a possibility and the dwp has so far only been officially told that it will be subject to a £20 disregard.

LackaDAISYcal - it would entirely depend on the type of disability. I know plenty of disabled people who don't think of themselves as 'vulnerable' in the least.

Fortyplus thats great news for foster carers, 900 effected not so :-(

Sock I never said I knew who was exempt or not. I just know I am not included as I dont claim any benefits and dont have a spare room at present

LackaDAISYcal it's not the only advice - where we are there's plenty of other people who would happily take on a mutual exchange because we have a massive shortage of 2 bed properties. You'll find that most social landlords aren't happy about these changes and will do everything they can to help. However if the op's sister's landlord doesn't have any 1 bed properties going spare it makes things difficult. I couldn't offer any advice on that without knowing their position which was why I suggested contacting her landlord.

Mad sorry that sounded abrupt I didn't mean it to, I wasn't being critical just giving info that's all.

And I'm glad I didn't dream the foster Carer bit.

So if a single mother with one child in a three bedroom place because her elder child has moved out and she is now living there with her youngest child now has to take in a lodger who is going to be living in the same house with her and her youngest child who is going to pay for the CRB check for this lodger then?
I bet not many people have thought this far ahead. And if/when something happens you will end up with a traumatized child and a single parent who gets demonized and blamed for taking the lodger in.
It wont be the Gov or officials who get the blame for pressuring her to do this in the first place!!!

It okay it is nearly 2am so am I as my sis is going through the courses and ss bit to be one and was starting to panic abit

Btw it makes me cross that some people seem to think that councils are rubbing their hands with glee at tenants getting their benefits reduced - it's just not true. Councils handle HB claims but at present the money is reimbursed by the govt so there is only the cost of admin attached. With all the changes including paying the cost of rent direct to the claimant instead of the landlord we're predicting that rent arrears will triple.

Another crazy otion for the op's sister is that she could probably take on a private 1-bed property and get her full benefit - even though the rent would be higher than a 2-bed social rented property. Work that one out!!

Darkesteyes no one will pay for a CRB check but as in my previous example they could move into a 2 bed privately rented property with none of the rights that they currently have as a secure tenant and higher rent than they currently pay - but they'd get benefits to cover the rent. It's madness.

The whole thing is fucking mental.

Dark, that's not an angle I had really concidered but its a very interesting point.

It would be interesting to know a sw perspective of the situation if for example the parent was known to ss perhaps receiving some form of support already.

I know one of my clients showed me some ss stuff as she didn't understand it and the only negative in the report was the children had limited understanding of stranger danger an example of them being comfortable with the sw and chatty and not shy was used but it was quite heavily focused on iykwim, it would be interesting given they had a issue with the dc's being fine with a sw what the stance on a lodger would be.

I think its scary Sock and the way this is all going its terrifying that its possible that it could happen.

Darkesteyes and don't even get me started on properties where we've spent thousands adapting them for disabled tenants and now the poor sods are going to lose benefits if they don't move out. Even if there's a medical reason why a couple sleep in separate rooms it doesn't count - according to the rules a couple only need one bedroom. I'd better get to bed before I get any crosser!!

Forty I don't think anybody thinks they are rubbing hands with glee.

Most of us know that the la's are just as concerned as we are and anybody in the know understands that its housing officers and LA staff who have been just as vocal in attempting to stop it happening but their hands are tied by the law.

I suppose my view is blinkered, as I deal with vulnerable adults who have carers in 4x a day to deal with their basic needs. As such, I can't imagine anyone wanting to rent a room from someone living in those circumstances; they might wonder whether they would end up as an additional carer.

And a question regarding additional rooms being justified for storing equipment; would my service user have an argument that as his living room is filled with his equipment and his "hospital" bed, this means his bedrooms are filled with his normal living room furniture?

It makes me angry too and im not directly affected by bedroom tax as we only have one bedroom but it must make your job ten times as hard.