Dear East Cambridgeshire District Council,

This is a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act.

This request concerns “exempt accommodation”. The UK Parliament defines this as: “Supported housing which is exempt from certain Housing Benefit provisions. It is a sector which houses more marginalised groups with support needs, such as recent prison leavers; care leavers; those fleeing domestic violence; and homeless people with substance dependence or mental health issues.”

I understand that housing benefit for people in “exempt accommodation” is paid by the council directly to landlords.

I would like to request the following information:

(1) Please state how much housing benefit has been paid by the council directly to landlords to provide “exempt accommodation” for those in receipt of the benefits. Please provide the figures for each of the past three financial years (2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21), as well as any available data for 2021/22.

(2) Please provide a list of the 20 landlords that have received the highest amount in housing benefit from the council for providing “exempt accommodation” for those in receipt of the benefits. Again, please provide this information for each of the past three financial years (2018/19, 2019/20, 2020/21) as well as any available data for 2021/22. For each year, please (a) provide the landlord’s full name or company name, (b) state the total amount they received from the council in each year.

I would like to highlight how the Information Commissioner’s Office has previously ruled that this type of information should be disclosed. For example, in 2015, the ICO held that Torbay Council was not entitled to withhold the names of landlords who have directly received the largest amounts of housing benefit. In 2014, the ICO also ruled that Halton Borough Council was wrong to withhold similar information.

I would like to receive the data in an Excel format. If you feel that a substantive response to this request is not possible within a reasonable timeframe, I would be grateful if you could contact me and provide assistance as to how I can refine the request. If you need any clarification, please contact me.

I look forward to receiving a response in 20 working days. Many thanks.

Yours faithfully,

Jenna Corderoy