PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES - United Kingdom Parliament

1025W
Written Answers
26 MARCH 2013
Written Answers
1026W
Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing
Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for
Work and Pensions what the cost of the exemption for
under-occupying households with disabled children or
armed forces’ personnel is; and how that cost will be
funded. [149711]
Steve Webb: The Department does not hold data on
disabled children who cannot share bedrooms.
However, claimants with disabled children are already
entitled to claim housing benefit for an extra bedroom
where the local authority is satisfied that it is necessary.
This is included in existing housing benefit expenditure.
The Department is also unable to make an estimate
from survey data of non-dependants who are armed
forced personnel. Parents of those who are in the
armed forces are already entitled to claim housing
benefit for an extra bedroom and this is included in
existing expenditure. The recent amendments to the
regulations allow housing benefit to continue for the
extra bedroom while the non-dependant is deployed on
operations.
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work
and Pensions what recent discussions he has had on
modifying the social housing underoccupation penalty
to allow a room to be kept free for the overnight carer
of a disabled child; and if he will make a statement.
[150173]
Steve Webb: Overnight care for a disabled child is
normally provided by parents or other family members
who already have a bedroom within the household.
If overnight care by a non-resident carer is required,
local authorities can consider discretionary housing
payments.
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work
and Pensions whether the omission of foster parents
and a family with a child who serves away from home
in the armed forces from the social housing
underoccupation rules will be funded from the existing
budget for discretionary housing payments; and if he
will make a statement. [150174]
Steve Webb: Central Government originally
allocated £5 million to the Discretionary Housing
Payment scheme towards the cost of foster carers. As
legislation has now been amended to cover the cost of
allowing foster carers an additional room, if
appropriate, and allowing the parents of armed forces
personnel who are away from home to retain their
room in both the private and social rented sectors, the
£5 million has been reallocated.
This means that the total DHP funding for 2013/14
is now £150 million. Local authorities will be notified
of their revised allocation.
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work
and Pensions if he will bring forward legislative
proposals to automatically omit disabled children from
the social housing underoccupation guidelines that
siblings must share a room as appropriate to their age;
and if he will make a statement. [150175]
Steve Webb: We have already clarified that local
authorities should allow an extra bedroom for children
who are unable to share because the nature of their
disabilities disturb the sleep of the child they are
normally expected to share with. However, it will be for
local authorities to satisfy themselves that this is the
case, based on individual circumstances.
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work
and Pensions what assessment he has made on the
implications of the outcome of Gorry versus the
Department of Work and Pensions case for couples
who cannot share a bedroom due to disability in
respect of the new social housing under-occupancy
rules; and if he will make a statement. [150178]
Steve Webb: Removal of the spare room subsidy in
the social rented sector will be monitored and
evaluated over a two-year period from April this year.
Initial findings will be available in 2014 and the final
report in late 2015. The evaluation will include
small-scale, independent primary research with a range
of local authorities, social landlords and voluntary
organisations.
As part of the research, we will look at people who
are unable to share rooms and where possible it will
also consider people’s financial circumstances, social
networks and family life.
Information Services: Hearing Impairment
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State
for Work and Pensions (1) what steps the Government
is taking to widen access for deaf people to
information and services; [149953]
(2) what steps the Government is taking to promote
learning and teaching of British Sign Language;
[149954]
(3) what steps the Government is taking to support
deaf children and families with deaf children; [149955]
(4) what steps the Government is taking to increase
the numbers of interpreters of British Sign Language;
[149956]
(5) what recent discussions (a) he, (b) Ministers and
(c) his officials have had with representatives from the
deaf community. [149957]
Esther McVey: Across Government, Departments
undertake a range of actions to meet their obligations
under the Equality Act 2010. This includes the
provisions which require service providers, including
those providing information, to make reasonable
adjustments where, otherwise, a disabled person would
be placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to
non-disabled people.
Depending on individual needs these actions may
include the provision of British Sign Language (BSL)
interpreters, Lipspeakers or Deafblind interpreters.
The Government also funds provision of BSL for
example through Access to Work, which we know is a
popular and effective programme that helps disabled
people get or keep employment. In addition, the
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS)
fully funds BSL courses for young people as a first
Level 2 or Level 3 qualification. The Government also
fully funds BSL training where it is needed to help