The increasing number of households on waiting lists for social housing in London highlights the "spiralling pressures" faced by boroughs. Recent government data reveals that 336,366 households were on London local authority waiting lists for social housing in 2024. This is the highest figure in over a decade, surpassing the previous record of 344,294 in 2013, and marks a 32% rise since 2014.
London has the largest number of households waiting for social housing, making up 25% of the national total in England. The cross-party London Councils group has issued a warning about a homelessness emergency in the capital, attributing it to the severe shortage of affordable homes. Their analysis indicates that over 183,000 Londoners – at least one in 50 residents – are currently homeless and living in temporary accommodation provided by their local borough.
Cllr Grace Williams, London Councils’ Executive Member for Housing & Regeneration, said:
“The growing number of Londoners stuck on waiting lists for social housing is the latest evidence of spiralling pressures in the capital.
“London is grappling with the most severe housing and homelessness crisis in the country. The capital is becoming increasingly unaffordable and, as these numbers demonstrate, there is a desperate need for more social housing.
“Boroughs are doing everything we can to build the affordable homes our communities are crying out for. However, we are also struggling with enormous resource constraints and immense challenges to housing delivery in London.
“Boroughs are determined to turn the situation around. We are strongly pro-housing growth and as committed as ever to working with the government to turbocharge housebuilding in the capital. We are also working to ensure we have the resources needed to cope with the immediate homelessness pressures we are facing.”
Despite the urgent need to improve housing conditions and build new homes in London, an analysis by London Councils indicates that boroughs are facing a £700 million shortfall in their social housing finances between 2023-24 and 2027-28. This financial gap is attributed to rapidly rising costs and the previous government's cap on social rent levels.
Simultaneously, boroughs are grappling with record numbers of homeless Londoners needing temporary accommodation. London Councils estimates that boroughs collectively spend £4 million daily on temporary accommodation, a figure that has surged by 68% over the past year.
London Councils has outlined several priorities for national policy action on housing and homelessness:
- Addressing the Social Housing Finance Crisis: Boroughs are calling for increased financial support for the social housing sector. They advocate for future social rents to be set at levels that sustain boroughs' social housing budgets and enable more investment in new social homes.
- Removing the Cap on Local Housing Allowance: The cap on Local Housing Allowance (LHA) for temporary accommodation in Housing Benefit subsidy, set in January 2011, has remained unchanged despite significant increases in temporary accommodation costs over the past 13 years. Data from 24 boroughs shows a £96 million gap in 2023-24 between the cost of providing temporary accommodation and what councils can recover from the government through the housing benefit subsidy. Lifting this cap would better reimburse boroughs for their temporary accommodation costs.
- Making LHA Rate Increases Permanent: Research by London Councils reveals that only 5% of private rental listings in London are affordable to households relying on LHA. Boroughs are advocating for the increase in LHA rates to become a permanent measure, with annual updates to track market rents and ensure adequate support for low-income tenants in the private rented sector.
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