Media portrayal of social housing tenants blamed for prejudice and humiliation
Media portrayal of social housing tenants blamed for prejudice and humiliation
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Exclusive: London’s social housing residents said ‘misleading stereotypes’ from television shows such as Benefits Street were affecting their employment and career opportunities, and even their dating lives. London’s social housing residents are facing prejudice, discrimination and humiliation due to their housing status - with media portrayals in TV shows like Benefits Street to blame, according to a new report.
![[Benefits Street was aired on Channel 4 10 years ago - but is still having an impact on the perception of people living in social housing, according to the report.]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/14/13/Lee-with-Mitzy-and-his-Mum-355Z2459Benefit.jpg)
Laying bare the stigma faced by those living in social housing a group of the capital’s biggest housing associations found that almost half of residents, 45 per cent, have experienced prejudice or discrimination because of their housing status. Meanwhile, more than a third of those surveyed by the group, called G15, described feelings of embarrassment.
![[Angela Rayner is pushing the renters’ rights bill through parliament]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/09/17/a97ea376baeef0c0f0398cfb17b3dd0eY29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzM2NTI5MTQ1-2.78649309.jpg)
The report blamed media portrayals in shows such as Channel 4’s Benefits Street, which it said shaped “misleading stereotypes” by showing them as criminals, unemployed or reliant on welfare. The five-part documentary, aired in 2014, focused on a street in Winson Green in Birmingham where 90 per cent of people were said to be claiming benefits.
![[Social housing residents said their rental status had impacted their job and dating prospects]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/10/10/7d1b4eb98e05084630579366097d0295Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzM2NTkwNzM0-2.21882582.jpg)
One resident who responded to the G15 survey said: “The media has a huge role in shaping people’s views. Programmes like Benefits Street made us feel judged and embarrassed. It’s not the reality of who we are.”. The group of housing associations said residents living in the 655,000 social rent homes across London formed “an essential part of the capital’s social and economic fabric”.
