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Immigrants and social housing research

Research published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) found that less than two per cent of all social housing residents are people who have moved to Britain in the last five years and that nine out of ten people who live in social housing were born in the UK.

As a result, the EHRC found that there is no bias in the allocation of social housing to immigrants.

The report identified a number of reasons that people may believe new migrants are getting priority over UK born residents for social housing.

These include:

• the belief that privately owned flats in blocks which were previously social housing are still "owned by the council"
  
• new developments often include social housing as well as privately owned accommodation with little obvious difference between the two
  
• the Borders Agency is using empty social housing to accommodate asylum seekers temporarily, which may be fuelling the idea that they are 'queue jumping'

Trevor Phillips, Chair of the EHRA, said: "We have to recognise that people’s perceptions are powerful, so it’s vital that social housing providers and policy makers work to foster understanding about what is really happening on the ground.

"Much of the public concern about the impact of migration on social housing has, at its heart, the failure of social housing supply to meet the demands of the population. The poorer the area, the longer the waiting lists, therefore the greater the tension. Government and social housing providers need to work with the communities they serve to address these issues."

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