The Northern Ireland Audit Office has warned that the full impact of welfare reform has not yet been felt in Northern Ireland. Many claimants will face significant hardships when the current mitigation measures come to an end in March 2020.
Advice NI and NICVA are warning that, with less than a year to go before Welfare Reform Mitigation runs out, thousands of vulnerable people across Northern Ireland may be facing a substantial drop in income and even eviction.
With the current mitigations package due to end in 2020, our Head of Policy Kevin Higgins looks at how Welfare Reform will impact thousands of the most vulnerable households in Northern Ireland.
On 8th April 2019, Advice NI and NICVA facilitated a media morning to highlight the welfare reform mitigations cliff edge NI faces in one year. You can download the media briefing paper below to find out how the end to the mitigations package will impact thousands of households across NI.
It has been estimated that approximately 200,000 local workers in NI are on the Government's job retention (furlough) scheme, which covers 80% of wages up to £2,500 a month.
Housing Rights is piloting Northern Ireland’s first housing mediation service for the private rented sector. The service is funded by the Department for Communities to provide an alternative way to resolve disputes in the sector.