Member News
25th March 2011
Shadow minister for housing, Alison Seabeck has accused housing minister, Grant Shapps of an "inconsistent approach" to localism in relation to local authority cuts to services for the homeless.
Speaking at Homeless Link's annual parliamentary reception attended by both Shapps and his colleague, the communities secretary, Eric Pickles, Seabeck expressed concern at the minister's mixed message to local authorities over cuts to the Supporting People programme.
"He is supporting cuts to local authority budgets and supporting local decision-making, but at the same time feels the need to advise local authorities on how they deal with their individual budgets," she said.
This came after Grant openly criticised some local authorities for taking a "retrograde step" in their choice to cut the Supporting People programme further than the 12 per cent cuts the government announced to the programme in the October spending review.
Provided by central government to local authorities in the form of a un-ringfenced grant, Supporting People provides housing-related services for the vulnerable.
In terms of the actual cuts local authorities plan to make to Supporting People expenditure on the ground, research by Homeless Link reveals a mixed picture.
The local authority of Essex is facing a cut in its central grant of 12 per cent, but is choosing to cut the overall level of funding for Supporting People, by 40 per cent.
Speaking about the discrepancies in levels of funding, Jenny Edwards, chief executive of Homeless Link, said:
"The spotlight is on the 41 per cent of authorities who are making deeper cuts than they are receiving themselves."
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