BBC Documentary - Don't Cap My Benefits!

I'm calling from the council about your benefits being cut you are going to lose 68 pounds 13 per week 295 pounds 33 pence per week next please the reason that you are being cut is because you are not working my worst fears were confirmed it is going to be an accommodation outside of London new you you don't be like and then anyone you've got seven children it is not possible for you to afford to live in London they're going to pay that figure if I go out to work but yet they can't pay my rent now I can pick up that computer - it down there a lot of people are suffering you couldn't display for kept you know and another people are out on the street would you do you see that making my children baby as my other son you have to go on more stuff and you might know what to do good the office problem morning there's rain here and I can be operated all over again to come back slung it doesn't make any IDs the reality is all were doing here is we're saying that nobody on benefits people who are not working should be earning more than the average earnings for the rest of Britain high for brain Council yeah my name's Manish well coming with regards to the benefit cap what Brent councils welfare reform team are delivering details of one of the most radical welfare reforms for 60 years it's called the overall benefit cap those birthers introduced by the government last august the cap means no one out of working on benefits gets more money than the average working family that set at no more than three hundred and fifty pounds a week in benefits for a single person and 500 pounds for families usually one word up on the door will stand back and see if anybody looks with the windows how about that another I want to answer the door yeah it's not much we can do 29 pounds is what you are losing per week from your housing benefit my husband is no job is yes if he's not working we need to maybe then refer him to somewhere where you could find what many will lose hundreds of pounds a week the government's message is clear eye shadow for housing benefit and bring me helpful work at least 16 hours a week as a single parent and 24 hours as a couple you'll avoid the cap and keep your house and benefits note that you are working yeah yeah have you made an application for working tax credit just dis yeah but because you are working 24 hours you are entitled to it across the UK Housing Benefit is usually enough to cover the rent in London as rents are the highest in the country the cap could result in many people losing their homes hallo I weigh from the council is your mum or dad in yeah sir Alma sorry and his team have spent the last year warning people how serious the impact of the government's changes are going to be lights and sitting the reason we're doing the visits is we're hoping to make sure that people are aware that they've been kept some people just don't think it's going to happen they won't be affected they just want to put their head in the sand it's good that they do finally do come and tell us that they've managed to get work or they've managed to increase their hours or something like that that's better for them and they can stay in their homes implemented by the government nationwide the cap is having the biggest impact in London boroughs like Brent almost half of those cats live in the capital I will give my loyalty to the United Kingdom brent is one of the most ethnically diverse and deprived boroughs in the country up to three times a week the council citizenship ceremony marks the final stage in the journey of those who want to become British citizens about 5,000 people in Brent each year set up him off and Mariano Trotter / excellent and let's do that a romantic shot with the Queen London's lack of cheap housing combined with the cab hits large vulnerable households hardest Council's like Brent say they have no choice but to move them out of the capital we will not see we will not accept any kind of Kosovo's style social cleansing body you are not going to see the coalition government believe the cap is fair and just saves money and encourages people into work the Labour Party broadly agrees polls suggest over 70% of us think it's a good idea ticket number 160 with access to Brent council and filmed over seven months we tell the story of how the government's new benefit changes are impacting on families he says you have to go Birmingham no matter what once we move out seven children they'll be without a school we will be jobless ultimately you're facing homelessness if it's a private sector bailiffs warrant tomorrow the eviction will be going ahead away as Auslan originally came from Somalia and has been living in Brent for 23 years he is now a British citizen deadline is to work on a bailiff so that means tomorrow 6:00 in the morning you have to move up so I called them everything they give us house in Burma I don't even Elizabeth I never been to Birmingham okay see those is awesome don't drop it the rent for a wises four-bedroom house is around five hundred pounds a week but that's the total amount of benefits after his cap the council believe his only option is moving him to cheaper accommodation a hundred and fifty miles away in Birmingham they're not happy did I wanna go was there losing the socialized family training we lose everything you go but if we lose its cool that's the biggest damage you will have it and I have to lose our job as well I leave it all my entire life in London I'm not going I'm definitely 100% it's a wises eviction day and it's time to hand over the keys to the landlord so you can call it buried it follows feels good everybody we don't have any problem known as a problem for but since this can't happen every Familia suffer another element I'll look for something else because I'm working on the kind of desire they cannot take anyway they head back to the council to persuade them they both have part-time jobs ours is a van driver and his wife's a beautician they believe they should exempt them from the cap and from being moved the cap is when you're not working but we work in how can he affect us this is evidence yes this is the papers this is my ability this is my culture this my basely what else evidence can I bring it this is the more than enough evidence as I understand it we offered the accommodation in Birmingham which you've done down and the reasons you've provided us for turning it down is that you're in employment you only in fact told us doing some form of employment for the first time yes I have before I said I was going to work first of the film we have records of phone conversations with your mother I don't know that full of volition backing conversations I said that was last week this compulsion was had last week when I was working shoe the shooting in the room I didn't tell her I was working we've seen this time and time again not just with yourself with a number of applicants who in a bid to try to avoid the cops come here and present us information not necessarily true the opening yourself or prosecution if we do find that you provided false information in an attempt to secure housing from this local authority we do not accept that your money is genuine okay no problem but I can't prove this away iwase situation really is you've got seven children yes it is not possible for you to afford we explain it to me how will you pay the rent for a property there's what 500 pound and you only get five hundred pounds on the government if we go to Bolivia you have to stand our ground you know and then I really am polite now family affairs our schools outdoor I may have to go there I know we'll miss our window you've got to realize is we didn't make this nose what we try to do is help we did not make it all better than you know you destroy me no we're not as I said your jobs on the question okay what about her shouldn't you still not exempt from the caps so you can't afford to stay yes the council workload begins to increase neck for me as the news of the cap finally gets around also I paid my rent what does that need me for water electric gas food and and you know you just can't they're gonna kill you if you don't find the walk um if you don't find the work of there is a big problem why not I can pull up and lived in Brent for thirty years my mum and dad lived here my friends they're my kids dad's live around here you know and they're talking about family value but they splitting up families maybe I should find a nice lady and make her pregnant because that's the only way I'm gonna be able to all she and I are going to be able to if every relationship and I'll get accounts of that because that's how it works isn't it 17:19 get knocked up get a council flat happy does just take a seat Tracey McCarthy is a single mother with three children who's lost a hundred and six pounds a week due to the cab she is also fighting an addiction he just wants the other pop a possession also tried to give them by hand but for the first time people is that cuz you're frightened in the air I wanna open dot in it's not like you're quite familiar with you [ __ ] Joe says see though you just got to wait for one more week Sinead I don't get worried just yet okay these will then be passed on to the temporary accommodation support team they will try and secure suitable accommodation for you and your family all right I don't know where I'm going to be in six months time I don't know if our children are still going to be attending the schools that they retain being whether I'm going to be able to go on to attend college it's just uncertainty this only exists what it is usually I can get work quite quick in a pub and I need work quick at the minute so I've been looking for a job and nothing yet so my confidence is just down low at the moment Tania Blake is a single mom of two who is desperate to find a job and avoid the cab won't keep you a moment I'm just wondering if you only vacancies at a moment can I almost 60% of those capped as single parents and they are the hardest hit thank you thank you Tania is capped exactly the same as a couple who could both work I've been going online newspapers going up in two places on person just to hand in my CV Oh Molly's got it thank you most of my problems would be over and I can get better sleep at nighttime that would be excellent I don't know if you have any vacancies or not job back attorneys CV yeah that would be lovely that would be lovely over the last few months Tania has had six job interviews when I get my job I will never be going back on benefits in my life again it's too stressful I'm a person that's always been to work and that put me under that tar with all the others like I'm like like I live on benefits to you I'm not about that do you know I don't want to be known as those people like that the benefit cap has contributed to a housing crisis in the capital with too many people chasing too few affordable homes in the past councils were free to pay the market rate for rented properties but in 2011 the coalition government cut what he paid private landlords they were then far less willing to rent to people claiming welfare resulting in increasing numbers of evictions it was the job of Brent's head of housing needs Lawrence Coker to deal with the fallout from the landlord's some of them are taking a hit of two or three hundred pounds per week which they couldn't sustain so the outcome of that was that they evicted the tenants and they they didn't read that their property to us by putting on a cap which is the whole country it hasn't worked for us it hasn't worked for London or or the southeast what we are having to do is to find accommodation which the households can afford by claiming the housing benefits but that's outside of London is outside of Brent and the families don't want to go there understandably because they've lived in Brent all their lives many claimants are now stuck often in poor housing in expensive areas waiting to be evicted their rents made unaffordable because of the cab my toilet it keeps seeing into flood up and everything and it will be like walking in war tile it's a sewage work so my house stinks like as soon as most at a time Tania and her two children Rios and Kamali were moved outside Brent to Notting Hill three years ago and the council paid her rent this is why they have to leave poison for the mice it's not good at all one time they came and they just put the poison in a dish and I found this little boy comment on mummy what's this then thought this was a good place for me you know they enforced this property on me with a 500 pound a week rent you know I just had a bar job at the time so I don't know how they expected me to afford this rent I had my work in Wembley my big boy was in nursery there no not good not good the cap means Tania's lost over 200 pounds a week coughing giggles smiling grins her rent eats up what's left and she's got nothing to live on if she doesn't find work she'll be evicted when I was growing up and never saw my mum and dad at work I don't know how anyone can be rich and proud on benefits no to me is very shameful you know I hate being in this situation I hate having to rely on the government only a job and the cheaper accommodation so then I've got more chance for more money to spend on the household and the boys because it isn't cheap there were 10 cases where a hundred thousand a year was spent on housing benefit for individual families that's ten too many it's one reason why labour has said we would support a cap on overall benefits but how best to design this cap to avoid it pushing you into homelessness and ending up in search of large cheaper properties many London boroughs rehouse families in the West Midlands like hansworth in Birmingham where rents are more affordable saw the beds arrived they're piled appeared at the moment because we doubt now until the family arrive which bedrooms each person will be sleeping in so mark his Brent councils man in Birmingham and he's preparing for a wires and his family's arrival from Brenta later that day we supply a fridge freezer to the property and the washing machine you know as well as a cooker that's what the clients are given we always make sure the toilets acclaim when people come because there's nothing worse than criminal aged the dirty toilet this property in London might be costing taxpayers about 50 rupees a month here in Birmingham the local Housing Authority right 740 is quite a substantial saving on what the local authority under peyote in London Roma but back in brent a wise is still resisting the council's offer the person I need an answer to is are you accepting the offer moment among the others I'm really stressed and confused I don't know what to choose and what to do I need to know the office is shutting down and said to you shut down the fire we've been you know we started our conversation before 4 o'clock almost 5 o'clock now I don't know what to say yes I need to know them when I walk next week I lose a job the question about your employment that will be investigating so the morning for Council of smoking burning in your eyes yeah I'm fine mark yeah yeah Mark's been on standby all night waiting for wires in his family I'm just reporting the clients didn't sir not last night yeah we've had nothing this morning we wait until 11:30 ish found him this morning still no answer so obviously it's look you know it's up to you lot at your end oh you know with that one that's two in a week you haven't turned up you know it's a bit frustrating that we've wasted my time but at the same time that they'll probably be more of these cases some people really really don't want to be and others are making the best of it I don't even know what I'm going actually Tonya's rent is expensive as a single mom she would prefer not to work but has no choice as she is desperate to avoid the cab we're down there come on board okay so we're calculating that you have to pay a difference of 219 pounds and 59 minutes they're waking up in two hundred and something pounds a week that's almost 800 pounds a month and I just don't have that that kind of money every week after I pay my rent I'm gonna have to send my children are begging southern I'm no ready to feed them or to pay my other bills at home I mean I'm thinking just to give up my puppet my mouth and then sniffling oh I don't know now don't blame on what they're doing to get like the lazy people back to work but you know I've just had a baby I'm not looking to go back to work when he's six months or seven eight look where he's walking into and go in their shoe then yeah I'll go back to work and stand what but it's hard it's hard it's hard as I said my worst fears were confirmed it is going to be an accommodation outside of London in High Wycombe I am - left man I'm good - very good - a family okay I'm going to this last well you you you you you you're doing me like an enema let's try to move this thing on let's try to move even listen to me listen Palestinian refugee Khaled cusine has seven children and moved to Brent sixteen years ago I'm telling you that nothing can be done this is all we have okay what do you try to stay with something try to share something I would rather be clearly how it comes this is my mind Khalid has a part-time grocers job earning one hundred and fifty pounds a week his benefits are eight hundred pounds per week as he's working he should never have been affected by the changes but he's still being evicted the only affordable accommodation is 30 miles away in High Wycombe Buckinghamshire I don't know I fooled them if you hit him myself who I was going somebody's at seriously my god this chair child emotionally blackmail off number one do your killing or you bastard that's called emotional granular contest nothing else about that besides okay so about that anything happens to your children that's within us your parental obligation to safeguard okay do you not want a black male housekeeper sir I can't go to that this inspire you have shown a lot out that if my eldest child helping because y'all spell bargains which local governmental authority officer in their right mind is going to do something like that you tell me you can't see here in protest is a public building will have a closing time you will eventually be asked to leave this building you understand me okay I'll get the children you can do anything I guess the children are even touch him I know the law if car lead wants to keep his job he's got to travel in from High Wycombe which will cost him over three hundred and fifty pounds a month I am confused my gosh she doesn't accept it I don't know what can I do stay with my friends please I just want to stay tomorrow's the day for daily I don't know what can I go it's very difficult situation you are like someone who's in middle of the fire his behavior the minute it's not really going to end nicely the situation for him eventually if he chooses not to leave then you know the ramification do you will be escorted off the premises you know he's here now and we can only provide him what's affordable unfortunately given time it's only get worse and worse we're going to see a lot more cases such as this he's got seven children need to think very carefully about what he's going to do now what was gonna worry you was Brent Lawrence Coker is seeing more cases like her leads people who have low paid jobs evicted and having to leave London my fear is where is this going to end where are we going to be able to house these families who are homeless because they've been evicted from accommodation which they can no longer afford even if you go out and you do get a job you won't necessarily be able to stay because there isn't the supply of the private sector housing which is affordable and available I had a trial of a job in a bar but that didn't go too well so that really made me lose a bit of my confidence Tania's seeking advice from a housing benefit expert you're in temporary accommodation okay which means they are you were full housing GT okay so it means they can't get rid of you it may be but what they'll do is they'll look to move you to rent that would be within this two hundred and eighty pounds and then it doesn't matter if you work or not because you're already going to get escape the cap just by reducing your rent the difficulty is going to be even that two hundred and eighty pounds that you would be left with you're going to struggle to find private rented accommodation that's cheap enough yeah that's what I'm trying to run away from because then housing you're in London anymore whether you work or not their housing you out to Birmingham to Luton yeah and if I go out there I have more support maybe I could contact Brent and ask them to try and find her cheaper temporary accommodation and these are the areas that she's willing to look at they'll be a nice thing for you to do but if Brent I don't trust because they haven't helped me before there's a lot of uncertainty yeah I know you're it's good of new wife I mean it's good of you on your side you're right yeah I just get upset was it such a big drop you really need to be young thoughtful about what we printed back in Brent housing officer Aleta here has got even more bad news for colleague this let one want to issue the applicants really say enforcement letter we can do this lawfully we made a reasonable adequate offer of accommodation and give them another one final chance to reconsider his decision if he doesn't then to all intents and purposes they're on their own we're not life managers been our life coaches we are we all will be always housing officers we have a choice in as much as it assure we got on him okay councils like Brent have the power to discharge their duty to rehouse Khalid if he continues to refuse offers of alternative accommodation he's not gonna be happy we offer threesome adequate accommodation in High Wycombe urge you to accept this you've got the right to review within 21 days of receiving this decision and if you choose not to them obviously there's nothing else we can do think about your children you but what they all under nine of them is not Khalid and his wife Pfizer still don't want to accept the offer the hostage mr. Kosan are you going to take the property or not yes ma'am you have to go on first off you might not what to do that's your responsibility take what they given you so they don't have to sit here tonight okay yeah take the property at least the family have somewhere to stay for tonight and then you can ask for a review yeah so you like to come upstairs this just you Dan just to stay here after arguing for over six hours Khalid and his family finally returned to their accommodation they will be evicted the next day about your benefits being cut for most recently telling you about the changes to your benefits as the changes begin to bite the Brent welfare reform team are still trying to reach as many potentially affected claimants as they can 295 pounds 33 pence per week you are going to lose 68 pounds 13 per week some it's really scary because a short was very for a lot of people some shortfalls are 20 pounds 10 pounds on shortfalls are hundred 300 pounds but you do understand the reason that you are being capped is because you are not working yeah you're saying that he's too sick to go and work well what about you then they reckon different ways some people do want to get into employment and they we can work with some people to move we can work with them as well some people don't have an option because they can't move children and they can't going to employment for whatever reason one of the ways the council softens the blow is drawing on a temporary government top-up fund that helps vulnerable families cope with the cap it's called discretionary housing payment dhp will be able to pay discretionary housing payment for you until at the end of the financial year which would be the 31st of March 2013 we're not going to throw money at people if they're going to sit there and just do nothing it's not to delay the process is to support a solution for the process yeah but your your husband can look after the kids can't hear while you work is that not possible Tanya's back at Brent she's convinced her benefits were being cut and believes she has to find a job but there's been some confusion we are being out at the moment for 500 rent is really college so I came here last week yeah so can you tell me why nobody stated this to me last week and well but all these figures from last week and I've been getting myself into alright tough and tumble cuz now you're telling me this it's kind of pissing me off now as her son Kamali is under one she was getting her top up all along but she had no idea I don't have any gas so my houses I've treated them again here my kids understand in one room I've not been eaten so my kids can eat do you know I mean I'm still breastfeeding this little boy all trying to my breasts are dried up now I went to my doctor and he said it cuz I'm not eating properly and coz I mean let's take starting chemo so much that he couldn't sleep at night did I need to do water no no I'm sorry I'm just so annoyed and angry right now I could pick up that computer and touch it down man why I am the minion situation now because I don't have to contribute these guys will pay to watch but in the meantime I was still not for a job so when it comes to March I don't have to come in this building and deal with you people because they'll just put me in I'm at home on semi time at home you can de-stress yes morally Tania's temporary benefit top-up will eventually run out a rent is so high the council might still be forced to move her out of London single mother Tracey McCarthy has also found she's being capped back 317 pounds of 80 pence here like Tonya she's also getting a temporary top up because she's studying but it's also about to run out okay so how much is the short-form it ain't 106 pounds 26 that's what you're sure a week a weekend it's not really affordable is it really it's a penguin more worrying for Tracy is her pending eviction and if you do get evicted because of the shortfall where to look at what you're done to avoid that eviction have you done anything to get into employment have you done anything to move then we'll look at again in November we'll review it on a regular basis to see how far you've got it would you be willing to get a part-time job if that meant that you can stay where you are it all depends whether live benefits financially you would want to do a better off camp with the Job Center fantasy weapons in high wycombe Khalid getting his first taste of his new home children they will foot down and one of them died here this house costs 375 pounds a week an equivalent house in Brent could cost over 500 pounds per week there was nice business for these things his looseness I will bring them here and see that the word they said Thursday and good for the salsa for family what is it can you see it you can see it isn't it if you don't mind 16 hours per me we will actually be looking at moving him outside of mountain one of those areas will be burning him how do you feel about that after all the council's efforts to warn capped claimants of the consequences of the benefits changes the message is finally hitting home 16 years ago we come as a refugee in Landa and now we all go second time refugee for London to Birmingham bar Samuel s that's I think is not good however this had to be later they said you have to move is very difficult to go outside in London because it is multicultural we need more schedule we know what problem we did this enough I didn't ask to be moved to Manchester this was thrust upon me because of the benefit cap do you not found me a property in a place that I said I did not want to go to I am NOT putting my family in danger for the sake of break out all Donal Roswell has been capped and her benefits almost halved she's a single mother who despite being moved to cheaper housing still needs to find a job as you know we have been engaging for you for some time okay unfortunate you haven't been successful and I have previously discussed being a table read got a lot of friends relax children I'm sorry five children Ava Avon eight gold feed yeah plain and straight eight but I've done Avon when I have three children so please don't be talking that publish to me or give you that facility that you need to give it that's you would you do it sitting down making five children really don't belittle me with Abel I'm just saying it'll give you that flexibility it doesn't give me no flexibility really really really no you can't just uproot families and take them out you can't just make them tell them what they can live off from what they caught because you're not living with their expenses everybody's family is individually uniquely different we can't help it detracted sister if attitude Jobcentre Plus to try and find employment there wasn't any jobs of her choice for now she needs to be a bit more open-minded of what kind of job she wants to get into nothing that will help her is she willing to do that I don't think so a little bit scared because it's too far away oh my gosh she's sick who's caring about the children nobody and they told me okay then here now there is a community law I can't trust anybody here presenting she can't see any future in this area and when I look to her I think like something is burning silencer lesson 7 - la flama : hello Nana let him fall in meditation additional have to do with adding dog inhalation that Neff say you can't play at home with their angel awara bowler in dr. Phil ahem she won't burn alice is immersed in bed the bat is so sad a sea of blue blood minik ishani min ha are you gonna sing it good night Lila good night Lila Tracy is still fighting her landlords attempt to evict her on the 4th of November that's when he wants me at this property but I don't intend to go it just keeps me awake at night wondering what's gonna happen whether I'm going to be stopped in a hotel and forgot about they threatening to put me down loot and I'm not happy about that Helena stay in the home area to up a family and put them outside of London it's not really practical because like my family networks in London and my friends are in London it's where I want to stay Tracy's bringing up three children alone and is unsure whether she is better off on benefits or working Tracy volunteers part-time and studies three days a week at college people have that attitude that single parents are single because they want to be and they get more money if they're a single parent it's not the case basically in a full-time job as it is I don't see at home watching Jeremy Cole I want to go out and work I want to go out and be busy people just busy but to go out and work cleaning toilets all day long and things like that so minimum wage what I was putting the children when they're all gone I don't know if I'm going to get the court letter through the doors and you're being evicted on such and such date you know you could do about the stress Khalid has returned to Brent to complain about his house in High Wycombe the stairs are a problem yes they're very dangerous publishes very long stare the second floor who find this one look and the matter is hoping for the children woke up at night they said was that like this is not healthy for children the Train if I travel from weekend to my job it will cost me around 400 pound a month I can afford it to be honest he's brought in closes of what was like every infestation of could be wood lice or I'm not sure some kind of beetle the fact that you've got up on stairs there I don't know but this is his responsibility later but it's highly unlikely as Mettler this these sorts of issues going to make it unsuitable what I need him to be leaving today with is the fact that this is the area that he's going to be living in the at least the foreseeable future so what's he doing out the children's school in for instance he said he's been working since 2006 and however it seems pretty harsh to have to say to people you might have to give up your job why is he going to give up his job because it's in her own and he's saying cause in 3 or 400 pounds a month commuting from High Wycombe but where's he going to live well exactly I'm gonna have to say hey I think your house or your job yeah well or Satan find your own accommodation you can help here with different said that this journey find a property that is affordable in Brens yeah we can more than you would if you actually went out and and word this is not going to be some sort of punitive program with mass homelessness that is not going to happen of course we won't allow that to happen but we are saying since the reforms began homelessness in London caused by landlords ending tenancies has increased by over 300% evicted families are regarded by brent as technically homeless and many end up in temporary hostels waiting for their turn to be moved out of the Burrow this is where and update channel cut it really well because we can't live in the kitchen of us people take it or is it mommy no cool Maya is a British citizen who came from Ethiopia twelve years ago she's a single mother and for the last three months together with her two daughters has been living in an emergency hostel we use for effort in this room so our food down you know our clothes that clothes that is inside this room 616 pounds for two years public it's not worth the money they're saying because that room is really small things or what shouldn't be that much money half sirs family were evicted because of rent arrears due to the cap the council can't find any affordable housing in brent so they are moving them to Luton I've lived in Breck for nearly all my life like 12 11 years and I like it here and I have a lot of family here so I can't just move and in Luton I have nobody I don't know anyone there I've never been there my life and plus I could do my GCC since I can't move to another school so they're really good for me so I'm refusing to get yeah after drag now we gonna come through yeah Tracy's back at the council still trying to find ways to make her finances add up and avoid being moved out of Brent say his story work you would have to pay about four pass towards your rent they cap only applies if you don't work okay if she was working 16 hours on minimum wage Tracy's total weekly income would be eight hundred and eleven pounds and if I rent stayed the same she would have more money to live on so you got 328 pounds thirty-seven pencil eggs roughly per weight for your living expenses yeah I don't believe that figure it wouldn't be as well well that's the figure the systems giving they're going to pay that figure if I go out to work but yet they can't pay my rent now because obviously got Kappa the mobile but yeah but then I'm still going to map the kept online no if you start work the cap is applied to you can get more than five hundred pounds a week most the time your petrol can work only if you work full-time maybe then sometimes it's hard to work out but 16 hours if you do the minimum for working tax credit you're definitely talking just usually if you get down yeah yeah just in case five okay Stan at college it means I'm going to struggle but well I'm hoping that because I'm in studies they'll continue to pay my rent but we'll say you know all the one healing she says I'm not definitely I'm not going with you if you want to go I'm staying Street really yeah mommy knows elder daughter Hafsa is still insisting on staying in Brent you need a house is indeed exactly so how you to talk to your children tell them you are the mother you can't just leave her there you're supposed to be taking know what to do can I have a right to say no this house really I know how pitiful if you refuse we'll stop working with you you can't come to us for help and the B&B where you are we are going to cancel it within seven days Mamina will have to find her own cheaper property or get a job she hasn't worked for 12 years and the council's deadline looms I don't think she'll be able to make it on her own she can't find the deposit because most of the estate agents was for one month rent one month deposit which is really hard even me I'm working I can't afford to do that they think they're being hard and they don't think it's happening actually they think it's just you making a decision on their behalf a lot coming here a lot quality when I like coming to the center it's something that I enjoy helping out in a children's nursery may help with Tracy's career plans but it won't stop her being capped and moved out of Brent no magic when I mentioned today I'm doing volunteer work it's not recognized by the council it's not recognized by the homeless unit they said it's an irrelevant form of moving process why they're happy for me to be homeless on the data my eviction comes and they're happy to put me in a different area so all these will completely be gone I would be happy to get paid job but it's just our certainty we later don't know where I'm going to be what's going to happen it's gonna affect everything Crazy's decision not to work as a gamble the council might continue to financially help out but if she's evicted she could end up like mommy no living in one of Brent's B&B hostels we don't have a page le'me knows moving today with her youngest daughter Hannon but needs to pick up her belongings stored with family and friends this is hardest tink I ever seen in my entire life really even her elder daughter half sir hasn't turned up she says I'm not going I'm not going Luton it's not my area I'm doing it to go so I'm feeling a little bit sad because usually we visit each other we can't if we I moved there because it's a little bit far and need this money a lot of merit a trifle here's a mommy knows arrived at her new house in Luton with Hanan her younger daughter hello i'm donna from tail properties marinas weekly hostel bill in brent was over six hundred pounds but in Luton this three-bedroom terrace house costs less than one hundred and seventy pounds a week this is a living room have a dining room through here's your kitchen bathroom can't be friendiy kitchen on your nocturnal I don't know is it is legal and then upstairs we have three bedrooms upstairs we've got a big old owl Center just five minutes away got a little shop down the road on the corner this is not it - wrong why they say suitable I can plan lounge diner that's what most of the houses look like now do you think this is look like cetera itty honest it is not really it is not Luton and again bad house this areas can feel it staff took for me if this one is in London I should say uh at least our vows in London legendary school same school but now I love a good house and also I'm changing affinity you know I think it's best might phone call to them so sigh sorter out through there we don't know mommy no makes one final plea to her Brent housing advisor do you think it's possible to come back in London yeah I can't carry this hard life really because you pushing me something I don't wanna really I'm not a stairs I fastest really why are you closing what what's happening again citing properly are you deciding not to yes I do you don't offer choice you've got to take it right okay what are you doing after over two years in her rented house Tracey's finally being evicted hell I'll or T but if I they got the van babe landlord tried to illegally evict me one day when I was out II come round bolted up the door so I couldn't get in again and I ended up having to climb for a bathroom window heavily pregnant I'm not really bothered about the landlord I'm just more worried about where I'm going to be tonight wherever I'm going to be it's going to be upsetting for the kids if I'm putting a bit bed and breakfast I'm not going to be able to keep these in their bedtime routine just going to be a nightmare yeah I'm leaving here today being evicted give me your number where's the Sun I got my load off you a father definitely the most channels out right from the price away their life those people are benefits to brand here it's not their fault about benefits we put down and if the 30 best of people at this benefit not destroyed I off your properties I wouldn't let a thing to the house or no last result I'm not giving these caves why should I he's checking me out look okay so myself Tracy now has to return to the council and declare herself and a family homeless new Wembley don't you okay at the council Traci's worst fears are confirmed there's not a house available just a hostel the main thing Tracy is that you're not on the road you know children will have a roof over their head and we've taken that into consideration I'm poppy there for over a year no you don't have to be there for over a year why would you say that because I've known people is it it's not people's traitor to your place and some my away marketability upwards never be a good just be stuffy down hopefully won't be for very long but just remember issue you've got somewhere to go - you know church won't be homeless yeah all right one movie a hostel of God it's just gonna be a nightmare I know it is in the last year due to the government's welfare reforms 276 households have been moved to accommodation outside of brent across the UK even no councils have tried to help claimants avoid the cab over 38,000 families were still affected what's difficult to predict for the long-term consequences of the government's reforms on the lives of those forced to leave their homes after seven months the experiences of the Brent families we have followed have been very different I'm this that's 12 uuuu you're doing me like any element Cali drove 30 miles each day to take his children to school and to keep his Brent job following a council review of his case they moved him and his family back to London seven children they'll be without the school we will be jobless a council investigation proved that a wise and his wife were legitimately working they moved to Birmingham but rarely lived there preferring to stay with family and Brent Donna never actually moved to Manchester and after 15 years on the housing waiting list she got a cheaper council house in print I've never thought the day would come when I'd actually have my own property to know that I'm still local the entire family's over the moon she's now got a full-time job in a children's nursery the government's intention is to encourage people back into work but so far only around one in ten of those capped has a job fatahna the council managed to find a cheaper private rented property back in Brent I'm just a lot more at ease now a lot more relaxed now because I can feel like I have a future now I can afford to get on with my life now but she is still unemployed mommy no found a part-time job but is still capped half so never did join her in Luton and stays with family and Brent they rarely see each other I'm feeling what all mom feel not feeling well when my daughter is other places I feel happy it's not good really what they're doing this it's been a fun season when I watch every TV so sometimes what I believe the Long's haven't seen how was that healthy three weeks it's one us to all be like Tracy and her family of three are currently living in a one-room hostel in Brent waiting for a new home somewhere if I'm here in September that it was love be able to go to college a lot of people praying for me and praying for myself and for my children and I'm just hoping that I will be able to get out of here as quick as possible basically and then get into some kind of temporary flat or something to enable me to have a steady life with my children don't jump on that bed nobody on benefits people who are not working should be earning more than the average earnings for the rest of Britain it is 255 pounds and 7 pens too much according to the they've done your household which means that your current accommodation is not the government is announcing the most radical overhaul of our welfare system since its inception driven by a simple overriding principle the purpose of welfare is to help people into work and Panorama returns on Monday at 8:30 tonight at 10:00 on BBC one a man has been charged with the Omagh bombing in which 29 people died and the latest on the MP Nigel Evans who's been found not guilty of rape and sexual assault the BBC News with Hugh Edwards is next

Channel: Red Dragon

Views: 1,502,298

Keywords: Documentary, BBC, Don't Cap My Benefits, Panorama, Immigrants, UKIP, British Broadcasting Corporation, London, Brent, Council, Benefits, DWP, Job Centre, Benefit Street

Id: vaVHTp2NKXw

Length: 58min 49sec (3529 seconds)

Published: Fri Apr 11 2014