Information Bulletin

Summary of Reports, Statistics and Policy News from the Week ending 19 September 2014

Scotland has voted no to independence by 55% to 45% (2,001,926 votes to 1,617,989).

JRF Activity

Blog from Julia Unwin #INDYREF Provides Scotland a once in a Generation Opportunity to Tackle
Poverty.

Publication - Landlords Strategies to Address Poverty and Disadvantage.

Pamphlet A UK without Poverty. (launching ahead of the forthcoming party conferences) sets out
the case for tackling poverty and outlines policy options available to governments.

Publication - A definition of Poverty.

Poverty

The UK unemployment rate fell to 6.2% in July, its lowest level since 2008, and the number of JSA
claimants fell below one million for the first time in six years. Earnings growth is still well behind
inflation excluding bonuses, earnings rose by 0.7% between May and July, while the current
inflation rate stands at 1.5%.

A report from the Citizens Advice Bureau has identified several significant problems for some
disabled people under Universal Credit. Some people will find it better to reduce their working hours
in order to access extra financial support to cover extra costs when working, while disabled people
who are not working, are living on their and dont have a carer, will face reduced financial report
under UC. 'Rebalancing Universal Credit: Making it Work for Disabled People'.

An open letter has been signed by ten prominent chief executives, calling for the minimum wage to
rise at a faster rate now that there are signs of economic recovery, to make up for its falling value in
recent years.

Agreement has been reached to pave the way for all Church of England schools to become full
living wage employers, to include all employees such as support staff. Meanwhile, Labour has said
this week that a Labour government would make government contractors pay the living wage.

Place
DCLG has launched a consultation on technical housing standards, with proposals to consolidate
the existing rules into five standards, covering home security, space, accessibility, water efficiency
and waste storage. The space standard will be the first ever national cross-tenure standard on
minimum space requirements.

High interest rates and a lack of clear communication from DECC has meant the Green Deal
scheme has failed to drive household energy improvements, says a report from the Energy and
Climate Change Committee. It recommends the scheme is redesigned, and alternative financial
incentives are provided such as stamp duty discounts and variable council tax rates to broaden the
appeal of energy saving.

Public investment is still vital to deliver sufficient affordable housing, concludes a report
commissioned by the NHF and G15. It finds that using housing associations to build more
affordable housing makes public money go further, because they not only build higher quality
homes but also deliver wider social benefits to support tenants.
Assessing the Social and Economic Impact of Affordable Housing Investment.

A National Housing Federation report on the housing crisis calls for a new Housing and
Infrastructure Bank and the introduction of Local Land Strategies. The report shows the average first
time buyer now needs a deposit ten times that needed in the early 1980s, in real terms. Two thirds
of first time buyers also now receive help from their parents. Broken Market, Broken Dreams.

A new report from ResPublica argues for certain cities to have greater devolved public services with
control over all public spending and integrated public services, using Greater Manchester as its test
case. It proposes fully devolved services could be running in the city within five years of the new
parliament. Devo Max- Devo Manc: Placed-based Public Services.

Parents who help their children with the deposit to buy their first house are contributing an average
of 23,000, according to research by Shelter.

An Ageing Society
Local authority spending figures show that spending on care for elderly and disabled people fell for
the first time in the last financial year, in spite of increasing demand.

The Government should appoint a single senior official at Cabinet level with responsibility for age
and ageing policy, recommends a manifesto published by the Ready for Ageing Alliance (whose
membership includes JRF). Getting Ready for Ageing: a manifesto for action. The Chief Executive
of the Alzheimers Society Jeremy Hughes writes about the manifesto in the Guardian.

A new report The Care Choice Gap calls for more awareness of care options and financial options,
so that individuals and families can plan well in advance and take responsibility for their own long-
term care. It also calls on NHS commissioners to think more carefully about the individuals they are
providing care for and how best to meet their needs. Full report.

The World Alzheimer Report 2014 has revealed strong evidence that controlling other health issues
such as diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, physical inactivity and smoking can reduce the risk
of developing dementia. Diabetes alone can increase the risk of dementia by 50%.

This Information Bulletin is produced on a weekly basis as an update for staff at the Joseph Rowntree
Foundation (JRF) and the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT) for the purposes of their work it is not
intended to be comprehensive but represents a selection of news and reports appearing in the last week. The
items contained in this Bulletin are for information only and do not necessarily reflect the views of the JRF
and JRHT.