Imminent cuts to housing benefit for families with extra bedrooms will still affect some foster carers a charity has warned, despite the government’s announcement earlier this week that they would be exempt.
Foster carers who look after more than one child while claiming housing benefit still face cuts, said Robert Tapsfield, Chief Executive of the Fostering Network:
“While we are delighted for the many foster carers who are now exempt from the housing benefit penalty, we are extremely concerned for those who have more than one bedroom for fostered children.”
He added:
“By restricting this [exemption] to those who only foster one child, the government is leaving many foster carers struggling.”
Carers who look after more than one child will now have to apply to a discretionary housing fund for support every six weeks, even if the placement is long term, the Guardian reports.
After welcoming the government’s announcement earlier this week, the charity said it was disappointed to now have to renew his campaign against the so-called ‘bedroom tax’.
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions told the paper:
“We’ve just announced that foster carers on benefits are entitled to a spare room and they are also better off because we do not take into account any income made from fostering when calculating their benefits.”
