The pandemic has impacted millions of people, including those who have no experience of the benefits system.
One in three households have lost income because of Covid-19, and nearly half of people with children have lost household income. Over 7 million UK adults are behind on their household bills.
The drop in the nation’s financial resilience, together with the end of the eviction ban, means that housing providers are braced for higher demand for support. Policy in Practice is here to help staff quickly guide tenants on the support available.
Better Off Calculator
Our award-winning Better Off Calculator is the best tool to help you grow the financial strength of your tenants.
The calculator helps you build the financial strength of your tenants without needing to be a welfare expert. The tool helps you securely and confidentially assess your tenant’s unique situation to pinpoint benefits they may be eligible for, to give them the widest possible range of support. It uses your resident’s information to calculate their future income to help them plan from month to month, so they can take control of their money and become financially stronger.
Whether you offer a self serve calculator on your website or liaise directly with your tenant by phone and email, you can be confident that you are giving the most accurate and up to date guidance, as efficiently as possible.
Sustainable arrears plans can be put in place so tenants can build up credit and even pay rent in advance.
Assess your tenant’s unique situation to identify benefits they are not claiming, but may be eligible for, to give them the widest possible range of support.
Access to more accurate data means that lettings departments can confidently place tenants in a home that they can afford.
Model changes in tenant’s circumstances so they can see how their financial situation is going to change. This could be as a result of redundancy, reduced job hours, or changes to their family such as having a baby.
In situations that result in court proceedings, housing providers can use the Better-Off scenarios to provide evidence of support offered.
Use budget advice calculations to create Action Plan agreements that give tenants a clear guide on managing and maximising their income.
Our housing provider clients use the Better Off Calculator to:
- Accurately maximise income
- Compare different scenarios
- Create a positive action plan
- Explain complex changes simply
- Identify ways to improve budgeting
- Give consistent and up-to-date advice
- Save, store and access cases efficiently
Inspirational stories from clients who use
our Better Off Calculator
Nadine Burns
Customer Support Team Manager
The Guinness Partnership
Grant Bailey
Benefit and Money Advice Team Leader
Cheltenham Borough Homes
Client interviews from Housing 2021
Marie Hardiman
Head of Customer Support
The Guinness Partnership
Caroline Gale
Money Advice Team Leader
Your Housing Group
Trusted by
Improved consistency delivers huge cost savings for Guinness
Guinness’ Destination 2018 plan brought the organisation together in a consistent and coherent way. The strategy fundamentally redesigned the way Guinness was organised and the systems used, and it was in this context that the Better Off Calculator was adopted. With improved communication, departments now work better and smarter together to ensure customers are more financially resilient.
Marie Hardeman discusses how creating a more consistent approach across three core service areas has helped The Guinness Partnership better support their 140,000 tenants in preparation for Universal Credit.
Register for an upcoming webinar
| Title | Date | Start Time | Duration | Register |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reducing barriers to work using data led campaigns
In September 2023 the UK experienced an economic inactivity rate of 21.3% and an estimated unemployment rate of 4.3%, both of which have increased compared to previous data. Economic inactivity has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, prompting government efforts to integrate this group into the workforce. Historically, policies under Universal Credit and legacy benefits emphasised pushing people into employment through conditionality and short term measures. Today, both major political parties are exploring ways to facilitate return to work and eliminate barriers to employment. However, the government is also extending conditionality and adopting a tougher stance on sanctions for a broader range of people. Haringey is home to a young, ethnically diverse population. In June 2023, almost one fifth of those between 16 to 65 were on Universal Credit. Nearly 7% of residents over 16 were claiming unemployment related benefits, a figure above the London average of 4.7% and the 3rd highest rate of all UK councils Haringey Council wanted to find ways to overcome barriers to employment for young people and families with children and has used data to achieve success with its employment support programmes. Join this webinar to learn: - The new carrot and stick policy changes designed to break down barriers to work and reduce economic inactivity - What Haringey Council did to increase take up of free childcare for two year olds to 70% - How Haringey Council successfully helped 95 NEETs on their employment journey With guest speakers from Haringey Council | 29/11/2023 | 10:30 GMT | 1.3 hours | Register |
| Policy review of 2023 and what 2024 may hold
Join our last webinar of 2023 to hear our policy analysts review 2023's policy changes and big issues, from the ongoing cost of living and energy crises to the funding of local government and the Autumn Statement. We will highlight our policy findings from the year including our work that revealed that millions of households across the UK are missing out on £19 billion of support each year. We'll look at the role that data is playing in helping leading organisations to tackle these issues. Through case studies of different types of households we'll look at what the changes mean for families now, and what 2024 has in store. Along the way we'll share the positive impact that organisations we work with are having, and give practical solutions that others can adopt. | 6/12/2023 | 10:30 GMT | 1.3 hours | Register |
| How the debt sector is connecting people to support | 31/1/2024 | 10:30 GMT | 1.3 hours | Register |
26
July
How housing providers are boosting the financial strength of customers during the cost of living crisis
On demand webinar
LISTEN BACK