Charging may be at local discretion

The government is unlikely to impose a payment
model on councils for Supporting People.

Kathleen Boyle, head of housing management and
support at the National Housing Federation, told an assisted living
conference last week that she was “convinced” the government would
not impose a single payment model.

Boyle added that, while the government would
“encourage and expect” local authorities to charge for supported
housing services in particular ways, it would ultimately be down to
local discretion.

She said councils could decide not to charge
small groups of service users, such as those with HIV. However,
Boyle said local authorities would not be able to exempt large
groups of people from Supporting People charges because they needed
the revenue.

The supported housing funding regime comes
into effect in 2003 and the government is still consulting on how
councils should charge for it.