Housing costs

Release 24.0

Housing costs

Sub area 1

Online publications

Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook

CPAG’s definitive guide to the social security system.

Here is the chapter on housing costs and universal credit:

Chapter 6: The housing costs element

Here are the key chapters relating to housing benefit:

Chapter 10: Housing benefit

Chapter 19: Housing benefit rent restrictions

Here is the chapter on additional help if you get help with housing costs within universal credit or housing benefit:

Chapter 29: Discretionary housing payments

Here is the chapter on help with housing costs within other benefits:

Chapter 18: Help with ground rent, service charges and other housing costs

Sub area 2

Articles

Here are the most recent articles which relate to housing costs from our Welfare Rights Bulletin:

•Erode to nowhere: the transitional SDP element in UC (February 2022)

Early warning system bulletins

Our EWS bulletin for England and Wales (December 2021) covers:

Being treated as liable to pay rent after splitting up with a partner or suffering a bereavement.

DWP and local authorities disagreeing about whether accommodation is ‘specified accommodation’ for housing benefit and the housing costs element of universal credit.

For EWS briefings and articles in Scotland:

Early warning system in Scotland

Sub area 3

Tools

Date from which universal credit housing costs should be awarded when DWP not notifed about them at beginning of claim: mandatory reconsideration

Universal credit housing costs where joint tenant has moved out - mandatory reconsideration

Training courses

We have a range of courses which cover housing costs and universal credit to suit advisers with all levels of experience.

Here’s what’s coming up:

CPAG training courses on housing costs