Poverty, housing and welfare reform:

Kathleen Kelly, Programme Manager, Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Current and future JRF research

What is poverty? When resources are not enough to meet your needs … income easiest to measure but not whole story

In income terms for (2011/12) 60% median income:o £128 pw for a single person

with no childreno £357 pw for couple with two

children Around 5th UK population

experience poverty in a given year

A tenth experience persistent poverty i.e. income below poverty line for 3 out of 4 years

Poverty, work and welfare reform

6.1 million people in poverty are in working households.

1 in 3 low paid workers are aged 31-50

Across UK around 20% of employees (5 million) earn less than the living wage

A ‘low pay, no pay cycle’ for many

Links between housing and poverty

Housing cost induced poverty has been growing for two decades

An extra 3.1 million people in the UK are in poverty after their housing costs have been paid.

Renters three times more likely to living in poverty

Housing efforts to reduce poverty =

limiting rent costs maintaining good conditions

Ongoing relevant work:

• Housing and work incentives• Landlords business plans and strategies• International comparison of benefits systems for

under 25s• Trade-offs at the bottom of the market

Housing and poverty programme

• Monitoring poverty and social exclusion• Take up of benefits• Welfare to work• Universal credit

Anti-Poverty Strategies for the UK

• Homelessness monitor• Nature and extent of destitution

Homelessness and Destitution

Impact on tenants … and implications

Impact on landlords … and implications

A word about the bedroom limit … potential reforms

Poverty, housing and welfare reform

@jrf_uk @theJRHT @jrfkathleen

JosephRowntreeFoundation

Kathleen.kelly@jrf.org.uk

For more information: www.jrf.org.uk