Title

Date

Start Time

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From arrears to resilience: How local authorities and housing organisations streamline their resident journey Fragmented support journeys are costly for organisations and draining for residents. More than a headache, they are a significant barrier to financial resilience. When people are forced to repeat their stories and provide the same evidence multiple times, it creates a friction that can prevent vital help from reaching those who need it most. This challenge is visible across sectors, whether someone is applying for a new tenancy or seeking urgent crisis support from their council.

This webinar explores the opportunity to bridge the £24 billion benefits gap by unifying disjointed processes into a single, seamless journey.

We will dive into how Livv Housing Group and Richmond and Wandsworth Councils:

• Maximise resident income: Instantly identify eligibility for national benefits, local support, and social tariffs.

• Eliminate "double-keying": Use the Universal Housing Form to collect data once and apply it across multiple support schemes.

• Strengthen tenancy sustainment: Shift from debt collection to proactive income maximisation, reducing rent loss and eviction risks.

• Optimise operational efficiency: Free up frontline staff by replacing manual data collection with a "tell us once" digital pathway.

At the end of the webinar, we will hold dedicated sessions in themed breakout rooms with our housing association and local authority speakers to discuss specific challenges.

Why attend

Join us to learn how other organisations are replacing fragmented applications with a unified platform that allows residents to tell their story once. We will discuss how to improve operational efficiency by removing the need for double keying and manual data collection.

This session is essential for leaders in housing and local government who want to move from reactive crisis management to a proactive and preventative service model.

25/3/2026

10:30am GMT

1 hour

Proactive income maximisation: eliminating cash shortfalls through data led HSF delivery in Islington

Published March 2026

CRF case study

Learnings can be applied to CRF delivery

£3,132

Average annual increase in income after costs per supported household

1,123

Households successfully moved out of a cash shortfall within 9 months

£147,680

Total reduction in rent and council tax arrears across the supported cohort

"By using the LIFT platform, we were able to shift our focus from simply distributing emergency grants to actively building long term financial resilience. The ability to identify households in a cash shortfall and track their progress nine months later has been invaluable. It has allowed us to prove that a proactive, data led approach doesn't just provide a temporary safety net, but actually helps residents move away from crisis for good."

The challenge: beyond emergency payments

For the latest round of the household support fund (HSF), Islington Council sought to move beyond one off crisis grants.

The goal was to identify households who were at risk or in crisis and needed support, and then move them toward long term stability by integrating income maximisation support into the resident journey.

The solution: targeted income maximisation

Islington used Policy in Practice’s LIFT platform to identify 3,371 households that were in a cash shortfall.

By using the granular data within LIFT, the council was able to move away from a reactive application model and instead proactively target those with the highest need.

By analysing the specific financial barriers each household faced through the LIFT dashboard, the council was able to:

Identify the exact cohort in a cash shortfall
Deliver HSF payments to meet immediate needs
Integrate support to increase benefit take up and reduce monthly outgoings

The results: evidencing resilience

The impact of this proactive approach was measured nine months after the payment by tracking the cohort through LIFT. The results demonstrate a significant shift in financial resilience.

Islington Council evidenced improved financial resilience using LIFT

Metric (per household)	Impact (supported group)	Comparison (struggling group)
Average monthly income rise	+ £261	+ £155
Monthly benefits income rise	+ £220	+ £140
Average arrears reduction	- £52	- £21

Of the original cohort, 1,123 households had successfully moved out of a cash shortfall 9 months later. Average income after costs rose by £261 per household per month. This increase was driven largely by benefits income rising by £220 per month.

The council also saw a total reduction in arrears of £147,680. This included a £14 reduction in average rent arrears and a £38 reduction in average council tax arrears per household.

Takeaways for delivering the Crisis and Resilience Fund

Islington provides a blueprint for what a successful resilience service looks like under the new fund.

By using the LIFT platform to deliver support and track the movement of residents out of poverty over a nine month period, the council is already meeting the DWP objectives for the Crisis and Resilience Fund.

For other councils, the takeaway is clear: accurate and efficient allocation of discretionary funds is best achieved when data led activity is used to evidence long term financial stability.

Want to know more about what Islington Council did?

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