Riverside - Riverside commissions worklessness study

Riverside has commissioned a study into worklessness and social housing to gain a better understanding of the needs and situations of its tenants.

Over the next six months the Policy Studies Institute will be working closely with Riverside staff to build a profile of tenants, provide evidence on the employment and financial issues for different household types and recommend systematic and joined-up approaches to delivering support to them. They aim to examine the following issues:

• What are the economic and housing circumstances of our tenants and how do these differ across the types of households?
• What influences their work chances and how do these factors differ across the tenant types?
• Does location matter? What is the association between the employment chances of tenants and the characteristics of neighbourhoods in which they live, including peer-effects?
• What policy measures are most likely to work for each type of household ensuring that the targets of reducing worklessness and improving financial inclusion are achieved most effectively?

Amy Redman, Research Manager at Riverside, said: “This study will recommend a range of tailored policy options aimed at reducing the distance of our tenants from the labour market and improving financial inclusion.

“We will be able to use this knowledge and recommendations in order to prioritise resources and focus attention on those options that improve the prosperity of tenants in the most effective way.”