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| When I asked people for bedroom tax stories, the response was shocking | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| New evidence published by the University of Manchester and the Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research reinforces what we already know – the removal of the spare room subsidy, better known as the bedroom tax, is causing serious harm to people on low incomes and their families. | New evidence published by the University of Manchester and the Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research reinforces what we already know – the removal of the spare room subsidy, better known as the bedroom tax, is causing serious harm to people on low incomes and their families. |
| Related: Bedroom tax: three in four affected have cut back on food, DWP research shows | Related: Bedroom tax: three in four affected have cut back on food, DWP research shows |
| Between 2013 and 2014 I interviewed 200 people living in social housing about their work, financial situation and experiences of welfare reform. A quarter of the people I interviewed had been affected by the bedroom tax, and it was immediately apparent that the extra burden of making up the new shortfall between their housing benefit and rent was having a huge impact on their lives. | Between 2013 and 2014 I interviewed 200 people living in social housing about their work, financial situation and experiences of welfare reform. A quarter of the people I interviewed had been affected by the bedroom tax, and it was immediately apparent that the extra burden of making up the new shortfall between their housing benefit and rent was having a huge impact on their lives. |
| The bedroom tax affects people indiscriminately: people with disabilities who use the spare room for their carer or their medical equipment; single fathers who want their children to have a room to stay in at the weekend; people just before retirement who have lived, worked and invested in their neighbourhood for decades; parents trying to provide a stable environment for their children. | The bedroom tax affects people indiscriminately: people with disabilities who use the spare room for their carer or their medical equipment; single fathers who want their children to have a room to stay in at the weekend; people just before retirement who have lived, worked and invested in their neighbourhood for decades; parents trying to provide a stable environment for their children. |
| The desperation people were feeling was palpable. As I spoke to them, they broke down in tears; they described feeling overwhelmed by debt, confessed to crippling anxiety, and in four cases said they had contemplated suicide as a result of their predicament. | The desperation people were feeling was palpable. As I spoke to them, they broke down in tears; they described feeling overwhelmed by debt, confessed to crippling anxiety, and in four cases said they had contemplated suicide as a result of their predicament. |
| These accounts show how people are driven to spend money they don’t have to hold on to their homes | These accounts show how people are driven to spend money they don’t have to hold on to their homes |
| Shocked by the stories I had heard, I helped start the blog My Spare Room, in which people describe in their own words their experience of the bedroom tax accompanied by a photo they’ve taken of the room in question. These accounts show how people are driven to spend money they don’t have to hold on to their homes – often the only piece of security they feel they have. People make financial sacrifices that strip them of their dignity, their social life and their health. As Rob from South Yorkshire describes: | Shocked by the stories I had heard, I helped start the blog My Spare Room, in which people describe in their own words their experience of the bedroom tax accompanied by a photo they’ve taken of the room in question. These accounts show how people are driven to spend money they don’t have to hold on to their homes – often the only piece of security they feel they have. People make financial sacrifices that strip them of their dignity, their social life and their health. As Rob from South Yorkshire describes: |
| “It’s very hard paying the £44 a month. I’m not working, I’m on the sick. And I have to find the money somehow. Paying the bedroom tax means I miss out on social activities, it affects my mental health, I have to buy cheap food, I can’t afford new clothes. But I pay it. I resent paying the bedroom tax, but I feel like I have to pay it because I didn’t want to lose my home.” | “It’s very hard paying the £44 a month. I’m not working, I’m on the sick. And I have to find the money somehow. Paying the bedroom tax means I miss out on social activities, it affects my mental health, I have to buy cheap food, I can’t afford new clothes. But I pay it. I resent paying the bedroom tax, but I feel like I have to pay it because I didn’t want to lose my home.” |
| The contributors describe how the financial pressure exerted by the bedroom tax has eroded their nerves, shot their confidence and made it increasingly difficult to hold down jobs and to face the outside world. Lisa from Hertfordshire writes: | The contributors describe how the financial pressure exerted by the bedroom tax has eroded their nerves, shot their confidence and made it increasingly difficult to hold down jobs and to face the outside world. Lisa from Hertfordshire writes: |
| “I was [working on a short-term contract] when I first started having to pay the bedroom tax, and the contract ended earlier than expected so I was suddenly out of work. […] I got so paranoid worrying about being sanctioned by the benefits people and paying the bedroom tax. I actually managed to make myself severely anxious and depressed, to the point where I couldn’t leave the house without a panic attack.” | “I was [working on a short-term contract] when I first started having to pay the bedroom tax, and the contract ended earlier than expected so I was suddenly out of work. […] I got so paranoid worrying about being sanctioned by the benefits people and paying the bedroom tax. I actually managed to make myself severely anxious and depressed, to the point where I couldn’t leave the house without a panic attack.” |
| Many turn to friends and family to bail them out, which in turn can lead to tensions, embarrassment and in the worst cases complete isolation from the wider support network. Arthur from Middlesbrough says: | Many turn to friends and family to bail them out, which in turn can lead to tensions, embarrassment and in the worst cases complete isolation from the wider support network. Arthur from Middlesbrough says: |
| “I had to borrow money off of my older two children to be paying off this bedroom tax. Borrowing money from your children, can you imagine that one? I had to borrow £100 a month off them to pay for that bedroom tax. I don’t borrow money off children! I don’t borrow money full stop! Can you understand that? I’m a proud man, you know, I can’t believe the government has done that to me.” | “I had to borrow money off of my older two children to be paying off this bedroom tax. Borrowing money from your children, can you imagine that one? I had to borrow £100 a month off them to pay for that bedroom tax. I don’t borrow money off children! I don’t borrow money full stop! Can you understand that? I’m a proud man, you know, I can’t believe the government has done that to me.” |
| In telling their stories, people affected by the bedroom tax also reflect on their experience of growing inequality, their feelings of disenfranchisement, and the insidious demonisation of the poor and vulnerable in our society, as Paul from Caernarfon explains: | In telling their stories, people affected by the bedroom tax also reflect on their experience of growing inequality, their feelings of disenfranchisement, and the insidious demonisation of the poor and vulnerable in our society, as Paul from Caernarfon explains: |
| “I think the divide in this country has never been so wide. It seems like more people are becoming aware of how far the government are removed from the people. And when politicians get on TV and say we’re all in this together it makes me furious. I’m surprised that there’s not a revolution on the street similar to the poll tax. I think it’s getting there, there’s definitely a strong and angry undercurrent.” | “I think the divide in this country has never been so wide. It seems like more people are becoming aware of how far the government are removed from the people. And when politicians get on TV and say we’re all in this together it makes me furious. I’m surprised that there’s not a revolution on the street similar to the poll tax. I think it’s getting there, there’s definitely a strong and angry undercurrent.” |
| In these interviews people have consistently returned to four key ideas, which I believe hold true for everyone: we need security; we want to live in dignity; we want to contribute to society in a meaningful way; and there are times in life when we all need support. If we have access to these things, we grow in confidence and flourish as individuals, as families and by extension as a society. If we are denied these things, we fall apart. The outcome of struggling on a daily basis over years to secure these basic needs is exhaustion, apathy, anger and hopelessness. | In these interviews people have consistently returned to four key ideas, which I believe hold true for everyone: we need security; we want to live in dignity; we want to contribute to society in a meaningful way; and there are times in life when we all need support. If we have access to these things, we grow in confidence and flourish as individuals, as families and by extension as a society. If we are denied these things, we fall apart. The outcome of struggling on a daily basis over years to secure these basic needs is exhaustion, apathy, anger and hopelessness. |
| The evidence overwhelmingly shows that in its current form the bedroom tax is pushing people to the brink. It’s time to push for a change before more damage is done. | The evidence overwhelmingly shows that in its current form the bedroom tax is pushing people to the brink. It’s time to push for a change before more damage is done. |
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