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The Supporting People scheme
Until a few years ago most of the services we provided to our residents were paid for through Housing Benefit. We charged the residents a notional rent to cover all the costs and Housing Benefit paid that rent on the residents' behalf.
Then the Housing Benefit scheme was changed so that it only covered the direct accommodation costs. The costs of all additional services, such as help with budgeting and advice on obtaining council housing, are now met through the Supporting People grant. Chelmsford Borough Council pays Housing Benefit and Essex County Council administers the Supporting People scheme.
There is a certain logic behind this so far as the local authorities are concerned. It separates accommodation costs from the support costs and, through the information we have to give, enables the County Council to see exactly what services its grant is financing. There is also a certain logic so far as we are concerned, as the Supporting People grant covers the support we provide to our residents generally and is not linked to particular residents. Our income from Housing Benefit ceases if a room is vacant but this is not the case with the Supporting People grant.
The burdens
There are downsides to this. Housing Benefit and Supporting People together still do not cover all our expenses. They do not pay anything towards capital costs we might incur. That is the reason we organise our own fund-raising activities and appeal for additional funds from time to time.
There is also an administrative burden. Both we and the councils have to handle two schemes instead of just one. To obtain grants from Supporting People we have to go through an accreditation process, which is subject to regular review, and we have to give the County Council comprehensive information on the support we provide. Volunteers at our Day Centre and our Night Shelter will be familiar with the notes they have to keep on the number of hot drinks given out, etc.
Running the Supporting People scheme puts additional burdens on the County Council too. They have to employ staff to administer it. They also have to manage the accreditation process, inspect the organisations receiving grants and assimilate all the statistical information we submit.
The benefits
The Supporting People scheme is probably fairer than the old system where everything was subsumed within the rent paid through Housing Benefit. Since it has been introduced, Supporting People has been an important part of our revenue funding.
And now you don't
No longer ring-fenced
The central government gives the local authorities the money they need to make Supporting People grants. When the scheme was first introduced this money was "ring fenced", in other words it could be used for Supporting People and nothing else. With effect from this financial year this ring-fencing was removed. The Supporting People funds are now just part of the general money the local authorities receive from central government; they can use it for other things if they think they are more urgent.
Budgetary restraints
A few days ago the Essex County Council told us that the government has now abolished the grant paid to councils to cover the costs of administering the Supporting Grant scheme, with effect from April this year. This grant paid most of the costs of the council team running the Supporting People scheme. As with practically all local authorities, Essex County Council does not have any slack elsewhere in its budget to bear the costs formerly paid from the government grant. There could be seriously detrimental effects on the administration of the Supporting People scheme for the foreseeable future.
It is too early to know what effect this will have on our own receipt of Supporting People grants, although we have to admit to some nervousness. Furthermore, the council has pointed out that Supporting People grants could be affected by a prospective cut of 25%-30% in the costs of public services. This could include payment for services offered to vulnerable people through organisations such as CHESS.
The costs
The real costs of any cuts will be human. If we have to reduce the services we offer, homeless and other vulnerable people in Chelmsford will have to cope without much of the day-to-day support that CHESS currently provides: no advice on applying for jobs or benefits, no help in bidding for council housing, no support during times of stress. In many cases there are no other local organisations ready to step into the breach. They don't have the capacity and they don't have the experience or expertise; they do have the same problems with funding.
And perhaps much of the financial burden would simply fall elsewhere. Without CHESS, how many of our clients would end up in hospital or in front of the courts?
What now?
We don't yet know what the future holds. We would ask you:
- to pray for a resolution to this situation and for guidance for the trustees and staff as they work out how best to deal with it; and
- to speak to any national or local politicians you know to make them aware of the potential problems.
You can also help by donating money to CHESS yourself. Clicking on the "Donate online" button on the left above will take you to a secure website where you can do this.
By itself CHESS is unimportant. It is the effect on our clients we are worried about.