With reports that the national housing crisis is putting increasing pressure on councils' budgets across the country, London Councils is reiterating calls for the government to work with councils to reverse the number of households relying on temporary accommodation.
The number of households entitled to homelessness support
from a London borough increased 15.2% between April 2022 and April 2023. London Councils is urging the government to take the following steps:
Raise Local Housing Allowance (LHA). LHA, which eligible
households receive as part of their housing benefit or Universal Credit if they
have a private landlord, has been frozen since 2020 despite private rents
increasing since then. Boroughs believe LHA should be increased to cover at
least 30% of local market rents – a policy the government adopted successfully
at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Support councils to buy accommodation sold by private
landlords. 40% of all homes listed for sale in London in 2022 were previously
let by a private landlord. The government should build on initiatives such as
the Local Authority Housing Fund by providing increased capital investment for
housing acquisitions, particularly to acquire homes being sold by private
landlords as they exit the market.
Boost Homelessness Prevention Grant funding. Local
authorities play a vital role in supporting struggling households to avoid
homelessness. Councils require an immediate emergency funding increase to
ensure local services have the resources needed in the face of rising levels of
demand for support.
Increase Discretionary Housing Payments. These payments are
used by councils to help residents in financial crisis meet their housing
costs. They are an essential homelessness prevention tool, but government
funding for Discretionary Housing Payments in 2023-24 has been frozen at
2022-23 levels, despite significantly increasing homelessness pressures.
Bring forward a cross-departmental strategy to reduce
homelessness. Tackling homelessness must become a major priority at a national
level with government departments working together – in addition to key
partners such as local authorities – as effectively as possible.