Our research has been cited in the House of Lords and the Guardian recently.
The House of Lords resumed its debate on the Housing and Planning Bill on 18 April. The government’s proposal to introduce fixed-term tenancies was the subject of a series of amendments. Read More
Findings from the first wave of our research on social housing are published today. The research by Prof Suzanne Fitzpatrick and Dr Beth Watts from Heriot Watt University focuses on fixed-term tenancies in social housing. It includes views from landlords and tenants, as well as other stakeholders.
The research found that fixed-term tenancies are causing considerable anxiety for some tenants, particularly those with a disability or health problems and for families with children. Some of the social landlords who were initially most enthusiastic about FTTs have become disillusioned about them because it seems unlikely they will generate any significant number of additional lettings. There are also concerns about administrative cost and complexity and the potential to destabilise communities.
The research project, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, is continuing until 2018. Our project team is interviewing tenants twice more over time.
Read the full report
Are we seeing more conditionality in social housing? That was the theme of recent presentations by team members Suzanne Fitzpatrick and Beth Watts. Professor Fitzpatrick at the National Housing Federation management conference and Dr Watts the Social Housing Research and Insight Conference this month outlined the shift away from the ‘home for life’ model in England. The situation is contrasted with that in Scotland, where there has been little appetite for fixed-term tenancies. Read their slides here.