Information in relation to the number and value of contracts entered into by local authorities with landlords for the purpose of providing accommodation under the Rental Accommodation Scheme is not held by my Department. Under the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS), it is a matter for each local authority to determine the rental payment it will make for any eligible property. However, the levels of recoupment available to them from my Department, which are based on rent supplement levels, may guide local authorities in their negotiations with landlords.
As part of their negotiation process, local authorities may agree, at their discretion, periodic rent reviews with landlords in line with the prevailing market conditions at the time. My Department has issued guidance to authorities advising them to ensure that rent reviews are undertaken where provided for and also advising authorities of the need to obtain value for money and have regard to local market conditions when entering into new agreements. Overall, I am satisfied that the scheme is providing value for money.
One of the main objectives for the RAS is to improve the living conditions and standards of accommodation for recipients and, to date, some 4,452 new units of accommodation (i.e. not currently in use for Rent Supplement purposes) have been sourced by authorities, which are generally of a higher standard than the existing Rent Supplement accommodation occupied by the households concerned. In that context, it is considered that the scheme is delivering value for money, as well as meeting an important social policy goal of delivering better accommodation to vulnerable households.
In addition, my Department has supported a number of external reviews of RAS undertaken by the Centre for Housing Research, as well as undertaking an Interim Value for Money and Policy Review of the scheme. In line with the Department of Finance guidelines on the latter, the completed review has recently been the subject of an external evaluation and will be published shortly.