Councils call for “urgent” government help to avert temporary accommodation crisis
A number of councils have signed an open letter to the Government calling for “urgent” help to avert a temporary accommodation crisis, following an emergency summit attended by 158 local authorities.
The summit, hosted by Eastbourne Borough Council and the District Councils' Network, was convened to address the social and financial crisis created by what has been described as an “unprecedented demand” for temporary accommodation.
Cllr Stephen Holt, Leader of Eastbourne Borough Council, noted that the cost of temporary accommodation to local authorities reached £1.7bn last year and was “increasing rapidly”.
All councils who attended the summit on 31 October were invited to sign the open letter, which included six main requests:
- Raise Local Housing Allowance rates to a level that will cover at least 30% of local market rent and commit to annual uprating.
- Provide £100m additional funding for Discretionary Housing Payments in 2023-24 and an additional £200m in 2024-25.
- Provide a £150m top-up to the Homelessness Prevention Grant for 2024-25.
- Review the cap for housing benefit subsidy rate for local authority homelessness placements.
- Develop policy to stimulate retention and supply in the privately rented sector.
- Give councils the long-term funding, flexibility and certainty needed to increase the supply of social housing.
Cllr Holt said: “The collapse of support for society's most vulnerable people is now a reality for many, unless the government urgently intervenes. […] This summit must be a catalyst for change and that change cannot wait.”
He added that he was "delighted” that so many councils had already signed the letter.
Cllr Hannah Dalton, the District Councils' Network housing spokesperson, said on Tuesday: "The fact that 158 councils attended today's summit demonstrates that we are in an emergency situation - the spiralling cost of temporary accommodation is overwhelming many councils.
"Unless the Government intervenes urgently, we'll no longer be able to afford our current support to the most vulnerable people in society and will have no option but to scale back this essential safety net.
"We urge the Chancellor to listen to the immense, cross-party strength of feeling in local government - unless money is found our services will be decimated, suffering will increase as more people fall into homelessness and other parts of the public sector will be left to pick up the pieces at huge cost."
A government spokesperson said: “Local authorities have seen an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £5.1 billion or 9.4% in cash terms on 2022/23, with almost £60 billion available for local government in England.
“We are committed to reducing the need for temporary accommodation by preventing homelessness before it occurs in the first place, which is why we are providing councils with £1 billion through the Homelessness Prevention Grant over three years.
“We are also delivering a fairer private rented sector for tenants and landlords through the Renters Reform Bill which includes abolishing Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.”
Lottie Winson
