Welfare reforms could cost region £380m a year

Academics from Teesside University have taken part in a study which found the Government’s welfare reforms could cost the region £380m a year.

Teesside, Durham and Newcastle Universities claim that the introduction of the benefit cap and changes to disabled people’s benefits, council tax benefit and housing benefit would have a profound impact on the North-East.

According to the report commissioned by the Association of North East Councils (ANEC), social housing tenants - especially those with disabilities - and social housing estates would be hardest hit.

The report concluded that the impact of under-occupancy and the structure of the housing stock in the North-East, which offers a limited number of smaller properties for under-occupying households to move into, left residents vulnerable to a range of pressures.

The study, which was compiled with help from the region’s Citizens Advice service, raised concerns that support networks would be broken down and the sustainability of communities would be undermined.

Councillor Paul Watson, chairman of ANEC, said: 'The implications for our economy and on the lives of people and communities right across the North East from the welfare reforms are significant.

'They are a key priority for Anec and this independent body of work will help us both monitor the impacts of the Government’s reforms as they are introduced and inform how we can best help and guide residents who will inevitably look to their local council for support.'

The report is aimed at national and local policy makers and community organisations.

Alison Jarvis, from Teesside University’s Social Futures Institute, was one of the academics who took part in the study.

She said: 'This is important research because of the potentially unseen spatial effects of these national policy changes. There is concern that whilst some welfare reform measures could help address issues in more densely populated and economically buoyant areas like the south east, applying them as a blanket change across the country may have effects that haven’t been realised yet.'

Dr Paul Crawshaw, Director of the Social Futures Institute, added: 'These are the most far reaching changes to the welfare system for many years and there is a lot of concern about the impact this will have on this region where we have higher rates of unemployment and more public sector jobs which is where we are seeing the toughest austerity measures being implemented.

'It is very important that we carry out detailed research into the impact of these changes.'

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