Councils ‘ripped off’ by private landlords, experts warn
New figures reveal English councils spend almost £1bn a year on temporary housing
Desperate councils are being “ripped off” as private housing providers take advantage of the growing homeless population, experts have warned, after new figures revealed that local authorities’ spending on temporary accommodation had soared to almost £1bn.
Analysis by the Guardian and the housing charity Shelter found that councils across England spent £997m on temporary accommodation in 2017-18, a 71% increase on the £584m in 2012-13.
Some councils are spending as much as £200 per head of their population on sheltering homeless households.
Housing policy experts said that the sharp rise in homelessness coupled with increasing charges from private providers were behind the increase.
The number of homeless households in England in temporary accommodation has risen by 47% in the last five years, according to official figures. At the end of June this year, there were 82,310 families in temporary accommodation, up from 55,840 in June 2013.
In an illustration of the extent of the capital’s housing crisis, all 32 London boroughs appeared among the top 45 local authorities with the highest per capita spend on temporary accommodation.
About 55,000 London households are living in temporary accommodation, and almost 70% of England’s homeless families are based in the capital. Only about 6% of London’s private rental market is available to families relying on housing benefit.
Most London councils rely on small private landlords to provide their temporary accommodation. In many cases landlords can make more profit from accommodation at the bottom end of the market if it is rented to councils for homeless households.
Councillor Darren Rodwell, the London Councils executive member for housing and planning, said the cost of securing suitable accommodation for homeless households was growing and the situation was unsustainable.
“These figures show how local authorities and taxpayers are being ripped off by failings in the national approach to this issue,” he said. “The government needs to take action. It’s clear we can’t keep relying on increasingly expensive private-sector accommodation, so more must be done to boost provision of social housing.”
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