Government funds Shelter to promote Renters’ Rights Act to tenants
3 months ago | 7 comments
Shelter CEO wants to work with private landlords
9:30 AM, 3rd February 2026, 3 months ago
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Shelter’s new chief executive hints she is willing to work with private landlords to tackle the housing crisis.
In an interview with Inside Housing, Sarah Elliott says she has had a constructive meeting with the chief executive of a landlord association.
Ms Elliott became the head of Shelter in September last year, after Polly Neate stood down following seven years in the role.
Going to have to work as a collective to end homelessness
Ms Elliott told Inside Housing that under her leadership, the housing charity wants to take a “convening role to get everyone around the table.”
She said she has already met with a private landlord association to discuss the impact of the Section 21 abolition under the Renters’ Rights Act. She did not name the association but hinted at a shift in the way Shelter engages with the private rented sector.
She told Inside Housing: “I think we’re very pragmatic, and I think our role will need to evolve. Where there are rogue landlords who are not doing the right thing, we clearly will not be on their side.
“But I do think we’re going to have to work as a collective if we’re going to improve the system and end homelessness.”
Ms Elliott added the housing charity wants to work with councils and housing developers to build more social housing.
Ms Neate criticised private landlords
This marks a shift from her predecessor, Polly Neate, who had criticised private landlords and accused the Conservative government of “bowing down to vested interests while renters are marched out of their homes in their thousands” over delays to the Renters’ (Reform) Bill.
Ms Neate also claimed that Section 21 evictions were a driving force behind homelessness, despite government evidence suggesting otherwise.
Last year, Ms Neate was nominated as a crossbench Peer in the House of Lords, with the Independent House of Lords Appointments Commission describing her as “an expert in social policy, specialising in housing, homelessness and violence against women and girls.”
Tags:
Abolition of Section 21 Evictions, polly neate shelter, Renters’ Rights Act, Sarah Elliot, Shelter
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Member Since May 2014 - Comments: 620
1:23 PM, 3rd February 2026, About 3 months ago
I did a quick google search and very quickly found over 20 corporate partnerships that Shelter benefit from.
This is in addition to the income from government which in 2025 was £7.66 million for contracts and £3.35 million in grants (normally they receive 10-15 million/yr. from government)
Not to mention the substantial sums that they collect from other sources such as donations and legacies
With these sums at their disposal perhaps they could break the habit of a lifetime and start housing people.
Member Since October 2013 - Comments: 1642 - Articles: 3
2:11 PM, 3rd February 2026, About 3 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Stella at 03/02/2026 – 13:23
Housing people… now that’s an idea.
I would like to understand what shelter does with all that money, apart from pay their people to deliver zero housing.
Member Since October 2019 - Comments: 401
2:27 PM, 3rd February 2026, About 3 months ago
Now- Now gentleman, don’t be too harsh. Many of those homeless could well be bankrupt LLs !
Member Since July 2014 - Comments: 59
6:24 PM, 3rd February 2026, About 3 months ago
I would wager, she’s talking with the NRLA. So, we can’t expect anything supportive for PRS LL’s from that cosy corner then!
Shelter have collapsed the PRS and the NRLA have ‘rolled over’ on every key issue, with the appeasing result little short of open treachery.
It’s way too late for either party to fix the damage.
Member Since December 2023 - Comments: 1590
11:24 PM, 3rd February 2026, About 3 months ago
Shelter said Section 21 was the leading cause of homelessness.
From 1st May, the housing crisis will be over and Shelter will be redundant.
Member Since October 2025 - Comments: 7
11:58 PM, 3rd February 2026, About 3 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Cider Drinker at 03/02/2026 – 23:24
And pigs, of course, will fly.
Member Since May 2025 - Comments: 75
8:05 AM, 4th February 2026, About 3 months ago
Reply to the comment left by NewYorkie at 03/02/2026 – 14:11
Of course they don’t actually house anybody homeless….they prevent homelessness by hurting landlords so tenants can live rent free.
Landlords end up being the charity not Shelter…
They need to sack their 50 lawyers.
They need to be criminally prosecuted for encouraging tenants to make fraudulent disrepair claims.
They are a fake charity.
I would never trust them. They make Mandelson look honest.
Great to see Polly Neate is gone but I suspect the new leader is just as bad as Polly was.
Member Since May 2019 - Comments: 5
8:29 AM, 4th February 2026, About 3 months ago
Apparently speaking to Ben Beadle 😂. In my opinion Jeremy Beadle would have put up more of a fight. We’ve had no support, no representation, and anything the NRLA does is purely for their own benefit. I can tell you from now I had a run in with shelter and both the tenant and shelter fabricated a load of lies about her living conditions and her situation. She was even on the front of there website and on tv. It was pure fiction. So no shelter I don’t buy what your selling
Member Since July 2022 - Comments: 2
5:31 PM, 4th February 2026, About 3 months ago
Shelter take 52 million a year to be an agitator and a whiner.
If it used just 1 million of that a year to buy properties for cash. They could show us all how easy it is.
Member Since November 2023 - Comments: 8
10:04 PM, 4th February 2026, About 3 months ago
They just realised they won’t have any landlords left to blame 🤣🤣