Liverpool City Council is working to mitigate a 10,000% surge in temporary accommodation costs that has risen from £250,000 in 2019 to a projected £25m by the end of this financial year. Almost 1,000 families are currently in temporary accommodation, which is becoming unsustainable. 558 of these families are housed in B&Bs or hotels. The rise in homelessness is leading to an increase in Section 21 eviction notices fuelled by rising rents resulting from increased mortgage interest rates.
The Council has devised a plan to curb the costs in the coming years. A report to the Council’s Cabinet, to be considered next Wednesday 1 February, recommends the authority begins a procurement exercise for the provision of 400 private sector properties for a duration of up to five years. The proposed contract is likely to commence 1 June 2024 with an estimated cost of £19m until 2029. The plan aims to move families out of B&Bs and hotels into more suitable and sustainable accommodation. Presently, 62 families have been housed in B&Bs or hotels for over six months.
Nearly 150 councils have brought up the issue of homelessness in Westminster, and Liverpool City Council has opened a temporary winter hub to assess newly found rough sleepers. The Council has also begun drafting a new Housing and Homelessness Strategy. Councillor Sarah Doyle, Cabinet Member for Housing, said that the situation was at a crisis point due to external factors, and the cost of temporary accommodation is becoming unsustainable. She fears that it is affecting the mental health of those affected, especially the children. The temporary accommodation plan is a significant step forward in mitigating the rise in costs, and it is hoped it will provide people with a “homely and sustainable” setting. However, the Council urges the government to invest in social rented homes, allowing more families to live in affordable and secure permanent accommodation.
Liverpool City Council will work with the private rented sector to reduce the amount of money spent on supporting families facing homelessness. The situation in Liverpool is said to be at a crisis point, with a surge experienced in homelessness due to a rise in Section 21 eviction notices, fuelled by increasing mortgage interest rates. At present, almost 1,000 families are housed in temporary accommodation –350 of whom are housed in B&Bs or hotels. Liverpool’s situation has also been compounded by the number of people granted the right to remain in the city. Councillor Sarah Doyle, Cabinet Member for Housing, highlighted that the cost of housing people in temporary accommodation due to “unprecedented external factors” has become unsustainable, prompting the Council to recommend a procurement exercise for the private sector for the provision of 400 properties for up to five years at an estimated cost of £19m until 2029. The plan aims to enable families to move out of B&Bs and hotels, where 62 families have been housed for over six months. The Council urges the government to invest in social rented homes to enable families to live in secure and affordable permanent accommodation
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