New Government Scheme introduced to tackle problem debt

The Government has introduced a new scheme called Breathing Space to help those experiencing problem debt.

The scheme will provide those experiencing problem debt with 60 days to get their finances back on track without the threat of further debt, letters or enforcement action. They will be supported with professional debt advice, with additional support and protection for those experiencing mental health crisis treatment.

The scheme is expected to support around 700,000 people who are struggling with this issue and may impact on the Set Aside process in almshouses. A Set Aside is likely to be paused while a resident makes use of the scheme, hopefully allowing a resident to get help with their finances so that they may begin to pay back any overdue Weekly Maintenance Contribution and get back to paying on time. The Almshouse Association would recommend that members look into the scheme and consider whether residents currently struggling to pay their WMC may benefit from making use of it.

Additional points to note:

• Most debts will qualify for a breathing space, including credit and store cards; personal and payday loans; overdrafts; utility bills, rent and mortgages arrears; and government debts like tax and benefits.
• Although interest and fees are frozen, a Breathing Space is not a payment holiday. People entering a Breathing Space will need to keep paying for any debts and ongoing liabilities they have – like their mortgage, rent and bills – whilst they work with a debt advisor to find a sustainable debt solution. If someone in a standard Breathing Space fails to comply with these obligations, then a debt adviser has the discretion to cancel their Breathing Space.

Posted 10 May 21

Each month, the Association posts a news summary of the latest Policy and Governance legislation that could impact / requires action from our member charities, with links to further information where applicable. Please find below our Apr/May 21 Summary:

Housing

• Homes England Showcase Almshouse Renovation – The Almshouse Association was pleased to see Homes England showcasing the renovation of a Grade II* listed almshouse in Sherburn House Charity in Durham, which was helped by a grant from the Government’s Affordable Homes Programme.

• Housing Ombudsman publishes Business Plan 2021-22 – The Housing Ombudsman has published its Business Plan 2021-22, which outlines the next steps to grow and improve its service that builds on changes introduced over the last year. The subscription fee for 2021-22 remains the same at £2.16 per unit.

Charity Commission

Investment guidance for trustees – The Charity Commission has published a consultation – closing 20 May – on the clarity of draft revised guidance about adopting a responsible (or “ethical”) approach to investing charity funds.

Adult Social Care

Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing for adult social care settings – DHSC has published guidance that outlines the COVID-19 testing available for testing staff, residents and visitors for all adult social care settings. The following are testing guidance for a range of specific adult social care settings:

• testing for adult care homes
  • testing for extra care and supported living settings
  • testing for homecare staff
  • testing for personal assistants
  • testing for day care centres
  • rapid lateral flow testing of visitors in adult social care settings

Coronavirus

Coronavirus guidance for the Charity Sector

The Charity Commission has updated its guidance for the charity sector in relation to COVID-19. Specifically, changes have been made to the section “AGMs and other meetings: postponing or cancelling meetings.”

You can find all our Coronavirus updates here

Previous Policy and Governance updates:

Policy and Governance update – April 2021 Summary
Policy and Governance update – March 2021 Summary
Policy & Governance update – February 2021 Summary
Policy and Governance update – January 2021 Summary
Policy & Governance update – December 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – October 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – September 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – July/August 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – June 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – May 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – Apr 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – Mar 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance – Feb 2020 Summary
Policy and Governance –Jan 2020 Summary

Posted 4 May 21

The Almshouse Association teamed up with Simon Stone, Associate at Stone King LLP, to present a webinar on ‘Setting aside – an almshouse toolkit’ to 87 member charities on Wednesday 21st April.

Setting aside appointments can be a complex and very sensitive area for almshouses. Trustees have to carefully balance the competing interests of protecting often vulnerable residents with the interests of the charity as a whole. The webinar covered key considerations and practical guidance for setting aside appointments, including:

• Trustees’ duties
• Status of the resident’s occupancy
• Letter of Appointment and Residents’ Handbook
• Obligations and breaches during the period of occupation
• Procedure for setting aside appointments
• Recovering possession

Members also put 17 questions to the presenters. Powerpoint slides and a recording of the webinar are now available to all members by clicking into the links below:

Simon Stone is an Associate Solicitor in the Dispute Resolution team at Stone King LLP. Simon joined the firm in 2014 after relocating from Australia and he has a particular specialism in property matters involving charities.

Over the years Simon has acted for numerous Almshouses in respect of setting aside appointments, both advising on the legal process as well as being acutely aware of charities’ obligations and related reputational issues.

Posted 22nd April 21

The Charity Commission updated its guidance on holding trustee meetings and AGMs during the Covid-19 pandemic on 13 April 2021.

Where it is not possible to hold a socially distanced meeting or if trustees do not feel safe meeting in person, the charity may wish to hold a meeting virtually or by telephone. You should check your governing document to see whether you are allowed to do this. If not, you should take a decision as a trustee body and make a note of this as a matter of good governance.

If it is not possible for you to hold a meeting online or by telephone, you may wish to postpone or cancel the meeting. You should check your governing document to see if there are any rules around postponement or cancellation. If not but you still feel this is the best and safest course of action for your charity, you should record the reasons for this decision to demonstrate good governance of your charity.

If this impacts your ability to submit your annual return on time, please contact the Charity Commission at filingextension@charitycommission.gov.uk to request an extension.

To read the full guidance, please visit:

www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-the-charity-sector.

Posted 14 April 21

In response to the Grenfell Tower disaster and in anticipation of the Social Housing White Paper, the Housing Ombudsman published its new Complaints Handling Code in July 2020. The aim of the Code is to ensure that residents are put at the heart of the complaints process and to ensure that complaints are dealt with in a fair, effective, and timely way.

The new code applies to all Registered Providers of Social Housing (‘Registered Providers’) and those charities that have voluntarily signed up to the Housing Ombudsman Scheme. Landlords are expected to meet the Code but it allows for some discretion as to how this is done. There are, however, two prescriptive elements to the Code, which landlords must implement:

1. A two stage complaints process
2. Timeframes for responses to resident complaints

The Almshouse Association encourages all of its members to adopt a similar approach to complaints handling as a matter of good practice.

The Code

The Complaint Handling Code is formed of six parts:

PART ONE – Definition of a complaint

The Code defines a complaints as:

“An expression of dissatisfaction, however made, about the standard of service, actions or lack of action by the organisation, its own staff, or those acting on its behalf, affecting an individual resident or group of residents.”

It notes that a resident does not have to use the word ‘complaint’ for it to be treated as such and landlords should endeavour to resolve issues at an early stage to avoid a formal complaint being made.

PART TWO – Accessibility and awareness

The Code states that landlords are required to have a clear and accessible complaints policy and process and this should be publicised on the charity’s website (if you have one), in leaflets, in newsletters, and in other correspondence with residents. The Code also requires landlords to make residents aware of the Housing Ombudsman service and provide contact details

PART THREE – Complaint team, procedure, timeliness and responsiveness

The code requires a social landlord to have a nominated person responsible for handling complaints. This could be a member of staff or, in smaller charities, a trustee. It sets out how the complaints procedure should work, the timeframes for dealing with each step of the process, and expectations on how residents are communicated with throughout the process. 

The Code also highlights the landlord’s duty to cooperate with a Housing Ombudsman investigation should this arise

PART FOUR – Fairness in complaint handling

The complaints process should be resident-focused with residents having the opportunity to put their points of view and expectations of an outcome before a decision is reached. The Code gives guidance on how a complaint should be handled fairly and how to deal with a complaint that is escalated

PART FIVE – Putting things right

Landlords should apologise for any failures identified and seek to resolve issues as soon as possible.

The Code notes the different ways in which a complaint can be resolved and the factors to consider when formulating a remedy. It also addresses concerns about legal liability.

PART 6 – Continuous learning and improvement

The Code encourages landlords to look beyond individual complaints and to consider whether any changes in process to deliver better service to residents. Learning and improvement from complaints should be included in the charity’s annual report.

Compliance

Failures under the Housing Ombudsman Scheme and Complaints Handling Code will result in a complaint handling failure order and the Code sets out the circumstances under which this would happen. The Ombudsman will publish the names of housing providers subject to these orders on a quarterly basis and share this information with the Regulator of Social Housing.

Action to be taken

If your charity has not yet done so and is a Registered Provider of Social Housing (or has been in the past) or has voluntarily signed up to the Housing Ombudsman Scheme, you should complete a self-assessment against the new Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code as soon as possible. The outcomes of the self- assessment should be reported to trustees. A template self-assessment form can be found on the Housing Ombudsman website at:

https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/landlords-info/complaint-handling-code/.

Once your charity has completed its self-assessment, the trustees should implement a new complaints procedure taking into account any deficiencies noted in the self-assessment.

Click here for a Complaints Handling Flowchart

Useful Links

Complaint Handling Code FULL – https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Complaint-Handling-Code.pdf
Housing Ombudsman Scheme – https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Housing-Ombudsman-Scheme-final-version-for-publication-Sep.pdf

Posted April 21