Temporary Accommodation Briefing Housing & Social Care Scrutiny Panel 5 th March 2019
Synopsis • The number of households placed in temporary accommodation (TA) has risen from 58 in April 2017 to 119 in February 2019 • This figure rose sharply in the early part of summer 2018 following the introduction of the Homeless Reduction Act 2018 and the urgent need to decant two sizeable tower blocks • To manage this problem the Council has been forced to use B&B accommodation and chain hotels (such as Travelodge) • These types of ‘emergency’ accommodation cost a lot more than more traditional forms of TA and can be an unsettling environment for the customer • Although the total number of households in TA has risen we have seen only a slight increase in the number of households being placed each week (from an average of 6.7 placements per week in 2017 to an average of 7.4 per week post April 2018) • The predominant issue has been a lack of movement through TA into more permanent settled accommodation leading to longer stays in temporary accommodation and a ‘backlog’ effect
Number of TA Placements 100 120 140 20 40 60 80 0 01/04/17 01/06/17 The Rise In The Number Of 01/08/17 Households In TA 01/10/17 01/12/17 01/02/18 01/04/18 01/06/18 01/08/18 01/10/18 01/12/18 01/02/19
Types Of Temporary Accommodation Currently Used Emergency Accommodation Emergency Accommodation Medium Term TA Medium Term TA 28 Short Term TA Short Term TA 30 Short-term & medium term temporary accommodation is finite; the Council currently uses 58 flats and maisonettes for short/medium term TA. Ideally emergency accommodation should be used for 2-3 nights before those customers are moved into other TA. When our short/medium term TA is fully occupied we are forced to use emergency accommodation more frequently and for longer periods of time.
The Rate Of Movement Through The Housing Register in the High Band 17.1 18.3 The number of applicants in the high The number of households being placed onto the Housing Register in the high priority band we can reasonably expect priority need band every week. to rehouse each week based on the current system. There is a disparity between the rate at which we are registering applicants in the high priority band and how quickly we are able to rehouse them (-1.2). This is largely due to a shortage of move-on accommodation. This is an important statistic as it affects the homeless applicants who are placed in this band.
The Housing Needs Of Applicants In The High Band (with residency priority) Other Housing Need Homelessness 49% 51% The charts above demonstrate how homeless applicants are prioritised alongside other customers in high priority need. Over 50% of all applicants registered in the high priority band are homeless; a customer’s position on the Housing Register is determined by their BAND (not their housing need) and the date of their registration.
Modelling The Future Demand For TA If we do nothing we can expect the demand 160 for TA to continue to rise steadily 140 To stop the rise in the use of TA we would need to rehouse customers just as 120 Number of TA Placements fast as we place them into TA. This would require more move on stock - an issue 100 that cannot be resolved quickly. 80 60 The ideal solution would be to immediately reduce the number of households placed in 40 costly emergency TA whilst we investigate sustainable practices to rehouse these 20 customers quicker in the long term. 0 01/04/17 01/06/17 01/08/17 01/10/17 01/12/17 01/02/18 01/04/18 01/06/18 01/08/18 01/10/18 01/12/18 01/02/19 01/04/19 01/06/19 01/08/19 01/10/19 01/12/19 01/02/20 01/04/20
Short Term Aims (and work in progress) • To reduce the number of households currently placed in TA – We have a legal duty to provide interim accommodation for homeless households and the only way to effect an immediate change is to consider taking extraordinary measures • To reduce the dependency on emergency accommodation – We have recently increased our medium term accommodation by taking on 3 x one bedroom and 1 x three bedroom ‘low demand’ properties from the HRA stock • To reduce the cost and improve the effectiveness of the emergency accommodation we do use – We are negotiating with the Regional Manager & Regional Director of a chain hotel regarding potential discounts, better methods of payment/invoicing and greater flexibility with ongoing bookings – We have identified a new B&B opening in the city and have already negotiated a reduction on the advertised room rates
Long Term Aims (and work in progress) • To reduce demand on TA so that the customers are leaving temporary accommodation as quickly as they are arriving – Exploring option of offering deposits to existing households in our leased properties where their circumstances have changed and we could look to move them on and free this accommodation up for other homeless households • Increase the availability of “move on” stock – Exploring more accommodation options for leased and purchased properties – New developments due to complete in 2019 include Goldsmith Avenue (50+ affordable units being built by VIVID) and Fred Frances Close (30+ affordable units being built by PCC) • To obtain better medium term accommodation which can also be used as long term temporary accommodation – New accommodation site identified which will possibly be used for TA, coming online in 12 months time.
Other Options • Stabilizing/reducing demand on TA will take time but the number of households placed in emergency accommodation is already very high. • We could reduce the number of households in TA if we (temporarily) increased their priority on the Housing Register. • This would mean that other applicants placed in the high priority band would have a longer wait to be rehoused. This includes customers with the following needs: – Homelessness (not in TA) – Management moves – Medical moves (where current housing seriously impacts on a severe or progressive illness) – Under-occupation – Overcrowding (in need of three or more extra bedrooms) • We would also reduce the dependency on emergency accommodation if we were able to quickly identify sites suitable for use as medium term accommodation.
THANK YOU
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