SPOTLIGHT

A zero sum game?

The number of SEND tribunal cases is rising and the proportion of appeals ‘lost’ by local authorities is at a record high. Lottie Winson talks to education lawyers to understand the reasons why, and sets out the results of Local Government Lawyer’s exclusive survey.

Conservatives propose national house-swap scheme

A future Conservative government would establish a database to help social housing tenants relocate anywhere in England, the shadow housing minister has said.

Grant Shapps told the National Housing Federation conference that the Tories would “facilitate a nationwide affordable-house-swap programme”, adding that he wanted “a truly universal system”.

Shapps said the intention was to make it as easy for social tenants to move as it is for people living in private housing. “If you are a social tenant, you don't have the same opportunities as other renters or homeowners. The system means that your aspirations are squeezed, your expectations lowered, and your horizons are limited.”

He added: “Ironically, social housing is actually polarising society, driving the ‘haves' and 'have nots' further apart. Of course tenants, understandably, don't want to give up the security of their home to take a chance and move around the country in pursuit of work.

“So in areas of economic decline where jobs – particularly in manufacturing – have disappeared, this lack of mobility has hastened the creation of sink estates with unemployment and deprivation all too prevalent.”

The shadow minister also revealed that the Tories have persuaded a number of leading figures from the social housing sector to join an industry forum set up by the party to consider ways to increase mobility.

Earlier this year the Tories announced proposals for a ‘right to move’ policy, under which tenants would have the right to demand the sale of their home so that they could move elsewhere.