Temporary Accommodation in Southwark to Cost £37.2 million in One Year

The cost of Temporary Accommodation in Southwark continues to soar, a presentation to a council committee has shown. 

Forecast Net Temporary Accommodation spend is now set to be £37.2 million in 2024/2025, with costs expected to rise next year again to £41 million. 

London Councils has said that across London, spend on Temporary Accommodation has reached £4 million a day, having risen by 68% in a year. 

The Southwark Liberal Democrats have warned that the Labour government’s changes to rules around homelessness grants will place even more pressure on already stretched council resources, and have renewed calls for more affordable housing to take pressure off. 

As part of the Labour government’s first round of annual funding for local governments announced just before Christmas, they have restricted the use of the homelessness grant so that no more than 50% of the grant can be spent on temporary accommodation.  

All councils have a legal duty to house people who present as homeless to them, which means that unless need decreases, the increasing cost of temporary accommodation will have to be found from other council resources. 

A lack of supply of accommodation has led to both increased demand for homelessness prevention, but also increased costs for the council which is having to spend substantially more to procure accommodation, over half of which are outside of the borough.  

Despite this cost, temporary accommodation found by councils is often poor quality, and riddled with damp and mould. The Housing Ombudsman recently highlighted Southwark in its report raising awareness of the “human cost” of temporary accommodation. 

Commenting, Southwark Liberal Democrats Deputy Leader Cllr Rachel Bentley said:  

“This staggering amount of money underlines just how grave the housing emergency is here in Southwark. It’s clear that we urgently need more affordable housing in London - to both take the pressure off council services, and give struggling residents safe, affordable, secure homes. Locally and nationally, Labour are failing to deliver.

The Labour Government’s reckless decision to restrict the homelessness grant shows that despite a new government, nothing has changed.”

ENDS

NOTES

• Figures from the presentation to Southwark’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee 
• Out of borough placement statistics found in the homelessness statistics linked here - 52% of Temporary Accommodation is now found outside of Southwark 
• London Councils statistics here 
• Housing Ombudsman report highlighting the “human cost” of Temporary Accommodation found here.