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G15 launches 'Offer to London' homelessness report

A pledge to tackle homelessness in London is being launched today (Wednesday 19 November) by the g15, a group of independent housing associations in London.

The g15’s ‘Offer to London’ has been devised in support of the Government’s target to reduce families in temporary accommodation by 50% by 2010. The group of 15 influential organisations, which between them house more than 700,000 Londoners, set out a number of pledges including to: make more homes available to help meet the temporary housing reduction target; make better use of housing stock; help families maintain their tenancies; and improve partnership working with local authorities in the capital.

Latest figures show that in London 13,800 families are ‘priority need’ homeless [1] and a further 53,870 are in temporary accommodation [2]. While these figures have fallen steadily in recent years, the economic downturn threatens an increase in homelessness. The Offer is being launched just weeks after the FSA announced that home repossessions are up 71% in one year. [3]

The Offer to London is being launched at the Chartered Institute for Housing’s annual Lettings and Homelessness Conference. It is being presented by Victor da Cunha, resident services director at East Thames Group, and chair of the g15 steering group that devised the offer. East Thames is also the first housing association to be nominated as regional homelessness champion for London by the Housing Corporation.

The Offer is a long-term commitment to improve housing options and support the drive to reduce homelessness in London through more focussed partnership working. Through it the G15 pledges to:

• Increase the proportion of its lettings nominations that are to homeless households from 27% to 35% over the next two years, and investigate areas where the proportion is lower than this in partnership with local authorities. This will equate to a further 2,729 homeless families housed each year.
• Remove barriers to moving households from temporary to settled accommodation, including minimising bureaucracy.
• Convert temporary housing to settled accommodation wherever possible, including by ensuring we are better informed about the needs of incoming households.
• Ensure we are helping residents to sustain their tenancies, such as by providing debt management services, and projects to develop skills and tackle worklessness.
• Establish local authority relationship managers in each borough to act as a link on the delivery of the Offer and ensure effective partnership working.

The Government’s 2005 strategy to reduce homelessness, Sustainable Communities: Settled Homes, Changing Lives, aims to halve the number of households in temporary accommodation by 2010 [4], including by increasing the supply of new social housing by 50% and making better use of existing social and private rented stock to provide settled homes.

Latest Government figures (for quarter two, 2008) show 74,690 households are in temporary accommodation in England, a 26% decrease from the 2004 baseline of 101,030. Far less progress has been made in London, with temporary accommodation households falling just 13% (from 61,670 to 53,870) during the same period. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of households in temporary accommodation in England are in London. [5]

The Offer to London has been put together on the back of research into g15’s current nominations and lettings in relation to reducing homelessness, and how this can be developed. It highlighted that:

• 27% of G15 lettings nominations are to homeless households, compared to a national average of 17% (although this is linked to higher homelessness levels in London);
• 29% of G15 lettings are into new properties, compared to a national average of 16%, due to the scale of development in London in recent years;
• While 48% of lettings are made via Choice Based Lettings (which allows residents to choose and apply for another suitable home, where they are prioritised according to need), just 7% were made through the Common Housing Register (a list of people who want social housing in a particular area), revealing a need to develop this approach further. [6]

Victor da Cunha, resident services director, East Thames Group, said: “Homelessness continues to have a devastating impact on tens of thousands of people’s lives across the UK, and is a particularly acute problem in London. Much work has been done in recent years by housing associations, local authorities and the voluntary sector to reduce homelessness, but more work is needed to achieve the Government’s target, particularly in the current economic climate. Through this Offer to London, the g15 is pledging a raft of measures that we believe can further reduce homelessness. We’ll be working hard to ensure we have buy-in from our partners and that these promises have a real impact for families in need across London.” 

Tom Dacey, chair of the g15, said: “The g15 has worked with the London boroughs and other partners to tackle homelessness, but we believe that more can be done. We have to make sure we are balancing the need for housing transfers from existing tenants with the need to house homeless people. Our Offer to London will help us remain focused on engaging effectively with our partners to ensure that more households can reap the benefits of a settled home. We also hope this agenda of effective partnership working to tackle homelessness will be a core priority for the new Homes and Communities Agency.”

East Thames Group is running a one-day conference on Tackling Homelessness in London for housing associations, local authorities and other organisations working to address homelessness. It takes place at ExCel, Royal Victoria Docks, on 11 February 2009 and costs just £70 +VAT per delegate. Call 01494 783 052 to book a place, or go to www.east-homes.co.uk/homelessnessconference.

Case study
Earlier this year, East Thames Group, a housing association operating across east London and Essex, helped 21 households move from temporary to permanent accommodation by purchasing their homes in Newham from a private landlord and giving the residents the opportunity to switch to a permanent tenancy. The purchase was made with a grant from the Housing Corporation and involved close partnership working with the London Borough of Newham.

Susan Hakimi, 18, is one of the residents who benefitted. She lives with her parents and five brothers and sisters. She says: “Being given the option to switch from temporary housing to having a permanent home was fantastic, and we leapt at the chance. It means we’re in a home that we can afford and the future feels much more secure for us and the children. It’s made such a difference to our family. We’re so happy in our home.”

For further information please contact:
Jools Townsend, communications manager, East Thames Group Tel: 0208 522 2042, email: jools.townsend@east-thames.co.uk

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