The Labour government has pledged to spend £1 billion on homelessness and rough sleeping over the next year and is set to publish a long-term strategy on tackling the issue following this summer’s spending review.
Homelessness minister Rushanara Ali said: “Reversing the years of failure this government has inherited will not be easy but we’re wasting no time in ending this devastating crisis, with a record £1bn going to crucial homelessness services this year, helping councils to support families faster.
“We will go even further to tackle all forms of homelessness through prevention and addressing its root causes. This goes alongside our mission to build 1.5 million new homes as part of our Plan for Change – boosting social and affordable housing and protecting renters by abolishing section 21 no fault evictions.”
The record-high number of households living in temporary accommodation is continuing to drain council finances.
Last week London Councils described the issue as the “single biggest risk” to local authority funds, warning a £330m overspend in 2024-25 was leaving boroughs facing bankruptcy.
Meanwhile, research from Shelter, published earlier this week in The Guardian, projected that councils across England could face costs of £3.9bn annually with the number of children in temporary accommodation set to surge 26% to 206,000 by 2029.
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Matt Downie, Crisis chief executive, called on the government to raise local housing allowance rates to ensure housing benefit covers the cost of private renting. He also urged ministers to build 90,000 social rent homes to help families out of temporary accommodation.
“England’s homelessness system is at breaking point. Once again, we are seeing record numbers of households trapped in temporary accommodation while they wait years for a social home or because they simply can’t afford the rental properties in their area,” said Downie.
“We’re supporting people in the most desperate of situations. This includes people who have been discharged from hospital to the streets following major surgery. We’re also seeing parents whose children are getting ill because of the appalling quality of the accommodation they are in.
“The Westminster government has a clear opportunity to stop this becoming the norm for generations to come through its upcoming strategy to end homelessness. They must commit to building the social homes we need, restore housing benefit and offer support to prevent homelessness in the first place. Ambition here is crucial – we must turn the tide on poverty and homelessness by giving people the foundation of a safe home.”
John Glenton, executive director of care and support at Riverside, added: “To fix these foundations, we also need supported housing services to receive sustainable, long-term ringfenced funding so there’s a safety net which can house people sleeping rough and help families out of temporary accommodation.”
The government figures that were published on Wednesday (30 April) did show some signs that fewer households required support from councils for homelessness between October and December last year.
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A total of 83,800 households were initially assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness, down 7.7% from the same quarter in 2023. Of these, 76,820 were deemed to be owed a statutory duty to prevent or relieve homelessness.
A total of 42,810 households were initially assessed as homeless and owed a relief duty from the council to lift them out of homelessness, down 6.6% on 2023.
There was a 2.7% fall in the number of households owed a prevention duty, down to 34,010. Of these, 5,820 households needed support after receiving a section 21 eviction notice, down 1.4% on the same quarter in 2023.
But Big Issue analysis found the number of households requiring help to avoid homelessness after facing a no-fault eviction rose 3% between 2023 and 2024 from 25,450 to 26,290 as the wait for the Renters’ Rights Bill goes on
Dan Wilson Craw, deputy chief executive of Generation Rent, said: “Our rental system is broken. With rent prices soaring far beyond what we earn, people become trapped living in temporary accommodation because they simply can’t find somewhere affordable to live.
“The government’s house building programme is welcome, but will take years to have a noticeable impact. People need change now. It must intervene to slam the brakes on soaring rents, while also unfreezing local housing allowance so those on low incomes have more options in finding a home.”
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