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Since 2024, Ronesha, aged 31, has been living in temporary housing alongside her two sons after facing homelessness due to a no-fault eviction. Unable to afford private rent, she found it difficult to secure social housing because many landlords required tenants to have a guarantor. Initially, the family spent seven weeks in a bed and breakfast, exceeding the six-week legal limit for such accommodation. During that time, the lack of proper cooking facilities and the absence of a fridge posed challenges, particularly for storing her younger son’s medication. Eventually, they were relocated to their current temporary residence.
Residing in North London, Ronesha is a registered carer for her younger child, who has type one diabetes along with additional complex health needs. The frequent moves between temporary homes have been challenging for him to handle. Additionally, the beeping of his glucose monitor at night disturbs their older son’s sleep and hampers his ability to concentrate on his GCSE studies. “He tried his best to do all the revision he could, but I felt really bad because there was nothing that I could do apart from giving alternatives like studying at a friend’s house, or going to the library,” Ronesha explained, underscoring how difficult it was for him to study at home.
Section 21 “no-fault” evictions, permitting landlords to evict tenants without a reason, are widely recognized as a significant cause of homelessness and were banned starting in May 2026. However, Ronesha emphasized that “Section 21 is not the problem” in her situation. Instead, she criticized the government for allowing rental prices to surge far beyond what people’s salaries can support, stating, “It doesn’t add up.” The Labour government had committed to building 1.5 million new homes in England during this Parliament but is currently behind target. Sarah Elliot, chief executive of the housing charity Shelter, condemned the failure to provide sufficient affordable social homes, saying, “It is shameful that a record number of children are growing up without a home because decades of political failure have choked off the supply of genuinely affordable social homes.”
The housing crisis was highlighted by the incoming prime minister, Burnham, who described the situation as a “housing crisis” and pledged to implement “the biggest council house-building programme since the post-war period.” Shelter urged him to use the upcoming Budget to remove financial obstacles hindering councils from constructing more social rent homes. Despite a nearly 25% reduction in households living in B&B accommodation by March, and a 50% drop among families with children in such settings, around 1,000 households with children still exceeded the six-week limit in B&Bs—though this number is lower than the previous year. Housing Secretary Angela Rayner acknowledged progress while pointing out ongoing challenges, saying, “While it’s welcome that more households are being helped into a home and fewer families are living in bed and breakfast accommodation, these figures show there is still a long way to go, with record numbers stuck in temporary accommodation.” Additionally, the government has committed an extra £340 million toward ending rough sleeping
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