- More than 100 local authorities are to join an online emergency summit this coming week, partly hosted by Eastbourne Borough Council, to discuss the spiralling costs of homelessness
- The council predicts it will have to spend £3.6 million on temporary accommodation. Its original budget for 2022/23 lists total annual spending as around £16 million
- The town’s Conservative MP Caroline Ansell said that two hotels in Eastbourne will no longer be housing asylum seekers
- But the Local Government Association has warned that this could shift the cost of housing migrants to local councils, intensifying the financial strain they face
More than 100 councils are due to join an emergency summit to discuss the social and financial crisis created by soaring demand for temporary accommodation.
The online meeting on Tuesday (31 October) is to be hosted by Eastbourne Borough Council and the District Councils’ Network.
Councillor Stephen Holt, leader of Liberal Democrat-controlled Eastbourne Borough Council, said: “The situation is stark. Councils provide a safety net for the most vulnerable people who need our help, and that safety net is at real risk of failing.”
In the last financial year (2022/23), the cost of temporary and emergency housing in Eastbourne was £4.6 million. The council reclaimed a £2 million subsidy from the government to help.
This year, the council expects spending on this aspect to increase to £5.8 million, against a £2.2 million subsidy. This will leave a £3.6 million hole in its budget.
Unprecedented demand on Sussex coast
Coun Holt (below) recently wrote to other council leaders in a letter seen by the BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporting Service, saying there was unprecedented demand from people presenting as homeless.
“These are people who are clearly without the means to access privately rented accommodation — and when you consider that the average rent in East Sussex is estimated to reach £1,383 [a month] by 2025, it is hardly a surprise,” he wrote.
Coun Hannah Dalton, the District Councils’ Network spokesperson for health, housing and hardship, said the situation was driven by a severe shortage of social housing, the cost-of-living crisis and “an unstable and unaffordable private rented sector”.
In addition to the costs of finding people emergency accommodation, the annual housing benefit bill in Eastbourne is £30 million.
This is funded by central government to help people to pay their rent and mortgages, if they are eligible.
This is nearly double the town’s annual budget of about £16 million for all other spending.
Migrants to leave hotels
Meanwhile, immigration minister Robert Jenrick has announced that 50 hotels nationally will no longer house asylum seekers under contracts which cost £8 million a day.
Among them will be two hotels in Eastbourne which will be emptied of the refugees currently living in them.
But the Local Government Association has questioned how these refugees are going to be housed by councils.
The chair of the Local Government Association, Shaun Davies (above), told BBC local radio that councils were legally obliged to house refugees who became homeless after leaving hotel accommodation while their asylum applications were processed.
“We’ve got a housing shortage, we’ve got a huge demand on temporary accommodation, and we’ve got councils in financial strain,” said Mr Davies, who is a Labour councillor in Telford, Shropshire.
He questioned where local authorities were supposed to house refugees once they became councils’ responsibilities.
What the MP says
Caroline Ansell, Conservative MP for Eastbourne and Willingdon, issued a press release welcoming the news that two local hotels will no longer be used in this way. She said this move to free them up was due to the impact on Eastbourne’s visitor economy.
“I am very pleased these two hotels in Eastbourne will no longer be used to house asylum seekers and hopefully they can go back to taking our tourists,” said Ms Ansell.
“This is something I committed to when I met hoteliers and B&B owners and it is a boost to our town.”
She said that asylum seekers whose applications were still being assessed would be “more appropriately housed”.
Ms Ansell (above) said: “Those whose application has been successful will now have recourse to funds through Universal Credit and can seek employment. It is very often the case they will move to join family or connections in other parts of the country.
“Some will be disappointed with a rejection of their case and plans will be made to return them to their home country.”
It is unclear where migrants leaving the hotels without family support or connections would be housed.
Ms Ansell added she shared the council’s concern about possible homelessness and would work with it on the issue.
Action by Government urged
The borough council said it aims to produce a joint cross-party letter after the online summit.
This will be sent to the Government, ahead of the Autumn Statement, urging immediate action.
Among measures likely to be suggested are:
- powers and funding for councils to increase the amount of social housing
- an increase in discretionary housing payments to help people with rent and in homelessness prevention grants
- an increase in local housing allowance rates for private rented accommodation
- a policy to stimulate supply in the privately rented sector
- a review of the housing benefit subsidy for council homelessness placements
Hastings Borough Council also faces financial problems due to the costs of homelessness. Council officers warned in July of an “incredibly precarious” situation and that it might face bankruptcy
In August, council leader Paul Barnett appealed to residents to help if they had spare rooms or space in their gardens for temporary buildings which could house people.
The council approved the sale of four assets, including a farm and land, worth £3 million in a bid to ease the situation.
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