Living Wage Foundation measures to tackle Winchester’s affordability
Winchester City Council is undertaking a range of measures to make living and working in the district more affordable. Although twice voted the best place to live in the UK, Winchester has also been identified as one of the least affordable places to live in the country. To address this the authority is taking a range of steps that will help residents and benefit taxpayers.
To mark this year’s Living Wage Week, Winchester City Councillor and Portfolio Holder for Professional Services Stephen Godfrey spoke at an event for London Councillors at Westminster. He explained that Winchester City Council is one of only four authorities in the south east of England to be accredited by the Living Wage Foundation and detailed ways in which this influences the Council’s social and community policies.
These policies include:
- A local council tax reduction scheme which replaces the national council tax benefit scheme and does not require a working age benefit claimant to pay any council tax until they are earning a basic wage
- An ambition to double the number of council homes delivered to more than 600 homes by 2021
- Running a national pilot scheme to help claimants move to Universal Credit
- Supporting people who are struggling to start a working life by using mentors
- Supporting and promoting the ReadEasy campaign which helps adults to read with confidence
- Ensuring that both Council employees and its contractors’ staff are paid at least a living wage
Portfolio Holder for Professional Services Cllr Godfrey commented:
The Council is addressing ‘affordability’ locally in as many ways as possible and this does include getting our own house in order. We are keen to attract and retain good staff and part of that is ensuring that they are valued by us as an employer. We also want to send this message to other employers across the district and so increase the number of lower paid workers who can work locally rather than having to commute or stay on benefits. Making a commitment to paying at least the living wage helps us and our contractors deliver a more reliable service that is better value for money.