430 per cent increase in B&B invest in homeless

Councils in England spent £142 million placing homeless households during sex and breakfasts in 2021/20, in contrast to £26.7 million in 2010/11 – a 430 per cent increase.

The Local Government Association analysis implies that rising amounts of people who are homeless are now being put into bed and breakfasts due to a severe shortage of housing meaning councils are being instructed to spend over five times as much cash on accommodation because they were about ten years ago.

There are presently 10,510 households during sex and breakfasts, based on provisional data, in contrast to 2,310 about ten years ago – more than a 350 per cent increase.

Ahead of the week’s LGA’s Virtual Annual Conference that will see over 1,500 council leaders and officials join together to discuss the most pressing issues facing our country, councils say this underlines the desperate need to build more social housing.

With previous LGA analysis showing council housing waiting lists could double as due to the pandemic, giving councils further powers and resources to build 100,000 social homes for rent every year would help the government to satisfy another of their annual housing target and reduce homelessness.

Councils leaders also state that by reforming To Buy so that councils can retain 100 per cent of receipts, have flexibility to mix right to receipts with other Federal government grants and be able to set the size of discounts locally, councils may go even further.

David Renard, LGA housing spokesperson, said: “Sadly, these figures reflect the size from the housing challenges that our country faces. Councils is only going to use bed and breakfasts as a last measure, but the severe lack of suitable housing means they are in possession of no choice. This is hugely disruptive to families with children, and the rising interest in support has come with soaring costs for councils.

“Through the pandemic government has trusted councils to get on with the job of protecting the nation, supporting people and putting infrastructures in position to help with recovery. You want to continue this momentum and work with government to tackle the shortage of housing and make the homes the nation desperately needs.

“Using the right funding and freedoms, councils might help government achieve its ambitions for the national recovery from the pandemic. Giving councils the powers to build council housing on the scale required, would go a significant way towards reducing homelessness and also the have to place households during sex and breakfasts.”

Polling through the LGA has additionally found that 80 percent of MPs and 88 per cent of Peers think councils must have more financial freedoms and powers to build new homes.