Source · Select Committees · Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Recommendation 14
14
Accepted
Paragraph: 84
Barriers to data sharing still impede councils identifying vulnerable residents for support.
Conclusion
We welcome the many initiatives, by local and central government, aimed at improving data sharing, particularly the pilots being carried out under the Digital Economy Act 2017 and the creation of the Office for Local Government; but overall we remain concerned that barriers to data sharing are impeding councils’ efforts to identify vulnerable residents. Being able to identify and engage with residents who are at risk of falling into arrears at an early stage will help to prevent residents from building up problem debt and will also improve collection rates. We are especially concerned that some local authority data protection officers might not fully understand the circumstances in which information concerning vulnerable individuals may be shared between teams.
Government Response Summary
The government describes ongoing efforts to improve data sharing with councils, including increasing data scope, delivering improvements to shared data by summer 2024, ensuring councils are aware, and exploring legislative amendments, to help councils identify residents in hardship.
Paragraph Reference:
84
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
The Government does not agree with the Committee’s recommendation that an application for universal credit automatically triggers an application for local council tax support. Council tax support schemes for working age people are designed by individual billing authorities following consultation, and reflect local circumstances. People who are entitled to Universal Credit may not be entitled to council tax support (and vice-versa). Putting in place a process triggering automatic applications risks creating additional bureaucracy and cost for local authorities, as well as confusion for council tax payers. In view of this, the Government believes that the existing locally led approach to council tax support applications should be maintained. The Government has published information on support for housing and other living costs (including Universal Credit and local council tax support) which can be found under the page “Benefits and financial support if you’re on low income”. The Government broadly agrees with the Committee’s recommendation and welcomes the Committee’s views on improving information sharing between central and local governments. Recognising that there are constraints that prohibit greater data sharing within the current legislation, the Government is looking at options to remove these barriers. DWP already shares a huge amount of data with councils, with 28 data shares in place compared to eight data shares in 2015. These cover a wide range of data sets, for example allowing councils to access DWP’s Customer Information System, which can help councils identify residents in hardship. DWP are engaging with councils on improving data shares, by: • increasing the scope of data in its MOUs with councils (including data on local council tax support and the data councils receive daily on Universal Credit changes) • maximising what councils can do within current legislation; • delivering improvements to data shared, with a large batch of improved data due to be shared with councils before the end of March 2024, and the rest expected by summer 2024; • ensuring councils are aware of these improvements, with national communications to councils and with 40 councils involved in a working group that helped to design the changes; and • exploring the possibility of amending data sharing legislation to allow more data sharing with councils.