Councils running out of options as demand from households facing homelessness soars

Nearly a quarter of a million households across England are experiencing homelessness, including sleeping on the streets, couch-surfing or stuck in unsuitable temporary accommodation like nightly paid B&Bs, according to new research from homelessness charity Crisis.

The annual study, funded by Crisis and led by Heriot-Watt University, is the strongest evidence yet of how the cost-of-living crisis, rising rents and widespread destitution are driving up homelessness levels and making it harder for councils to provide people with effective support.

The findings, which draw on a national survey of councils, statistical analysis and in-depth interviews, shows how 85% of councils across England are facing an increase in people experiencing homelessness – the highest number to say this in any year since the survey began.

At the same time, many councils said that the ongoing freeze to housing benefit, dwindling social housing supply and a general lack of affordable housing was making it increasingly difficult to support struggling households out of homelessness.

The report also lays bare how unstable the private rented market has become. Nearly 90% of councils reported an increase in requests for support from those evicted from the private rented sector, while 93% anticipate a further increase over the coming year.

As councils’ access to social housing has declined over the years, local authorities are increasingly turning to the private rented sector to try and house low-income households. But the report highlights how surging rents and fierce competition for properties is making it near impossible to house people experiencing homelessness in some areas of the country, with 97% of councils stating they have struggled to source private rentals over the past year.

With councils running out of suitable longer-term housing options, they are increasingly reliant on temporary accommodation. The number of households living in such accommodation is now at record levels, with a large number of councils stating that they are running out of temporary accommodation and struggling to procure more.

This forces councils to rely on inappropriate forms of accommodation as a solution, meaning thousands of people – including families with children – live for long periods of time in B&Bs or nightly paid accommodation, often far away from their families and communities in out-of-borough placements. Often in poor condition and without necessities like cooking and washing facilities, it is estimated that the number of households in unsuitable temporary accommodation has tripled over the past ten years.

Matt Downie, chief executive of Crisis, said ‘The homelessness system is at breaking point. Temporary accommodation should be a short-term emergency measure yet, as the report shows, it is increasingly becoming the default solution for many councils. This is leaving thousands of people living out their lives in a permanent state of limbo, enduring cramped, unsuitable conditions – with a fifth of households in temporary accommodation stuck there for over five years.

‘It comes as no surprise that councils are reporting that they are running out of temporary accommodation. For too long the emphasis has been on managing homelessness, not building the social homes we need to provide security to low-income households.

‘The alarm bells are ringing loud and clear. The Westminster government must address the chronic lack of social housing and increase housing benefit, so it covers the true cost of rents. We cannot allow this situation to escalate further and consign more lives to the misery of homelessness.’

Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick of Heriot-Watt University said: ‘This report highlights how councils across the country are facing an impossible situation. With record numbers of people experiencing homelessness, the vast majority of councils are expecting this already dire situation to become even worse.

‘Without access to affordable private rented homes or social housing, we are only going to see more and more households forced into homelessness. We need to address the root causes that are pushing people into homelessness in the first place to ensure that everyone has a safe place to call home.’

Image: Jon Tyson