The Housing Corporation, which invests public money in housing associations across England, relaxed a rule that requires all housing associations or organisations bidding for funding for new building work to have the running costs guaranteed by the local authority.
James Berrington, policy manager for supported housing at the corporation, said this change would affect a range of young people's projects. He added: "We are confident projects will now successfully bid for new schemes."
The Government's Supporting People Strategy transferred responsibility for the operating costs of supported housing to local authorities two years ago. The change was meant to ensure that all proposals for new schemes met local needs, but it led to spending on new buildings being cut in half during the two years it was in place.
While welcoming the change, young people's housing organisations expressed some reservations. Sophie Livingstone, head of policy and communications at The Foyer Federation, said: "The previous restrictions presented a catch-22 situation for many housing associations and certainly slowed the momentum of the growth of Foyers."
Anthony Lawton, chief executive of youth homelessness charity Centrepoint, said: "It will be important to develop services that could be used for different client groups should it be impossible to secure the intended revenue support."
www.housingcorp.gov.uk.
