Temporary accommodation: why partnership models must form part of the solution

Pre-Budget, let’s not forget that the government invested a significant amount of capital in the social housing sector several months ago, which is another step in the right direction.

Unfortunately, though, we’ve found that the process involved in accessing this grant funding in London is extremely restrictive. While we may be a regulated social housing provider and an exempt charity, we are unique in the sector.

The power of partnership

Our aim is to work together with our key partners, so we can meet our objectives to house people experiencing homelessness.

For local authorities in east London, customer requirements, associated costs and available budgets are all different. Therefore, a range of solutions, including our intermediate housing-based partnership model, is needed.

Instead of temporary accommodation, our partnership model is based on providing people with settled homes. We acquire and refurbish homes from the open market and turn them around, within 16 weeks on average, to provide the accommodation that is so desperately needed.

In turn, this helps local authorities handle their homelessness nominations and associated budgets more efficiently too.

Providing longer-term stability

Our rent is set between social rent and market rent, capped at social housing allowance levels, which enables us to fully cater for our customers receiving full or partial benefits. Many of our customers work and may be in receipt of top-up benefits.

In some instances, working in partnership enables us to receive some grant funding from local authorities, which makes the money we have to invest in additional homes go that bit further. Almost all our homes are offered for nominations from the homelessness lists held by our local authority partners.

Right now, we provide assured shorthold tenancies, which will switch to periodic tenancies when the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force next May.

Our partnership model is a settled accommodation solution, which is technically temporary, But the model does not deliver your ‘typical’ temporary outcome.

Customers can stay for as long as they need to and are only evicted if they breach the terms of their tenancy. Our average tenure length is six years.

Helping people feel settled sooner

Before people move into our properties, we always put flooring in every room, net curtains or blinds in the windows and white goods in the kitchen. We also offer a small furniture package for those most in need.

We believe it’s the right thing to do. The people we help have experienced homelessness; they are coming to us after living in B&Bs, hotel rooms or sofa surfing. They may have little money and very few possessions. But our model allows them to feel like they’re at home from day one.

A multitude of historic and emerging factors, such as the frozen housing allowance and fewer properties being offered by private landlords for rent, overlaid with rising costs and increasingly squeezed budgets, has created a major bottleneck.

While partnership models aren’t a magic bullet, they are helping bridge the affordable homes gap while more new homes are built.

Homes play an important part in our lives – having access to a safe, decent and affordable home is essential to a happy, healthy life.

The homelessness crisis we are facing can be solved by implementing a range of practical solutions that provide people with higher quality, longer-term living arrangements, and working more closely together at every possible opportunity.

Josie Parsons, chief executive, Local Space