Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to improve the monitoring of standards and compliance with regulations by (a) private hostels, (b) bed and breakfasts and (c) other unsupported temporary accommodation.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head. The numbers of households in temporary accommodation remains well below the September 2004 peak.
Local authorities have a duty to ensure that any accommodation provided for a homeless household under the homelessness legislation must be suitable. In considering ‘suitability’ authorities must, by law, consider whether the accommodation is affordable for the applicant, its size, its condition, its accessibility and also its location.
In 2012, we changed the law so that councils can place families in decent and affordable private rented homes. This now means homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation, spending less time in temporary accommodation.
In addition, we have allocated £550 million until 2020 to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, as well as supporting the Homelessness Reduction Act, including: protecting £315 million of funding to local authorities and £149 million of central government funding for homelessness programmes.
We have also replaced the Department for Work and Pension’s Temporary Accommodation Management Fee with a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant which local authorities can use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
DCLG publishes regular statistics on rough sleeping, statutory homelessness, temporary accommodation and homelessness prevention and relief. These are published at national, London and local authority level . The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the long-term sustainability of temporary accommodation as a housing solution.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head. The numbers of households in temporary accommodation remains well below the September 2004 peak.
Local authorities have a duty to ensure that any accommodation provided for a homeless household under the homelessness legislation must be suitable. In considering ‘suitability’ authorities must, by law, consider whether the accommodation is affordable for the applicant, its size, its condition, its accessibility and also its location.
In 2012, we changed the law so that councils can place families in decent and affordable private rented homes. This now means homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation, spending less time in temporary accommodation.
In addition, we have allocated £550 million until 2020 to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, as well as supporting the Homelessness Reduction Act, including: protecting £315 million of funding to local authorities and £149 million of central government funding for homelessness programmes.
We have also replaced the Department for Work and Pension’s Temporary Accommodation Management Fee with a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant which local authorities can use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
DCLG publishes regular statistics on rough sleeping, statutory homelessness, temporary accommodation and homelessness prevention and relief. These are published at national, London and local authority level . The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) safety and (b) adequacy of living conditions in temporary accommodation.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head. The numbers of households in temporary accommodation remains well below the September 2004 peak.
Local authorities have a duty to ensure that any accommodation provided for a homeless household under the homelessness legislation must be suitable. In considering ‘suitability’ authorities must, by law, consider whether the accommodation is affordable for the applicant, its size, its condition, its accessibility and also its location.
In 2012, we changed the law so that councils can place families in decent and affordable private rented homes. This now means homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation, spending less time in temporary accommodation.
In addition, we have allocated £550 million until 2020 to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, as well as supporting the Homelessness Reduction Act, including: protecting £315 million of funding to local authorities and £149 million of central government funding for homelessness programmes.
We have also replaced the Department for Work and Pension’s Temporary Accommodation Management Fee with a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant which local authorities can use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
DCLG publishes regular statistics on rough sleeping, statutory homelessness, temporary accommodation and homelessness prevention and relief. These are published at national, London and local authority level . The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) safety and (b) adequacy of living conditions in (i) private hostels, (ii) bed and breakfasts and (iii) other unsupported temporary accommodation.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head. The numbers of households in temporary accommodation remains well below the September 2004 peak.
Local authorities have a duty to ensure that any accommodation provided for a homeless household under the homelessness legislation must be suitable. In considering ‘suitability’ authorities must, by law, consider whether the accommodation is affordable for the applicant, its size, its condition, its accessibility and also its location.
In 2012, we changed the law so that councils can place families in decent and affordable private rented homes. This now means homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation, spending less time in temporary accommodation.
In addition, we have allocated £550 million until 2020 to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, as well as supporting the Homelessness Reduction Act, including: protecting £315 million of funding to local authorities and £149 million of central government funding for homelessness programmes.
We have also replaced the Department for Work and Pension’s Temporary Accommodation Management Fee with a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant which local authorities can use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
DCLG publishes regular statistics on rough sleeping, statutory homelessness, temporary accommodation and homelessness prevention and relief. These are published at national, London and local authority level . The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the number of households in (a) the London Borough of Haringey, (b) London and (c) England who have been living in temporary accommodation for (i) three, (ii) six and (iii) 12 months.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head. The numbers of households in temporary accommodation remains well below the September 2004 peak.
Local authorities have a duty to ensure that any accommodation provided for a homeless household under the homelessness legislation must be suitable. In considering ‘suitability’ authorities must, by law, consider whether the accommodation is affordable for the applicant, its size, its condition, its accessibility and also its location.
In 2012, we changed the law so that councils can place families in decent and affordable private rented homes. This now means homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation, spending less time in temporary accommodation.
In addition, we have allocated £550 million until 2020 to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, as well as supporting the Homelessness Reduction Act, including: protecting £315 million of funding to local authorities and £149 million of central government funding for homelessness programmes.
We have also replaced the Department for Work and Pension’s Temporary Accommodation Management Fee with a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant which local authorities can use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
DCLG publishes regular statistics on rough sleeping, statutory homelessness, temporary accommodation and homelessness prevention and relief. These are published at national, London and local authority level . The latest statistics can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of households on local authority housing waiting lists in (a) the London Borough of Haringey, (b) London and (c) England.
Answered by Alok Sharma - COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
Estimates of the numbers of households on local authority waiting lists by local authority in England are published in the Department’s statistics Live Table 600 to be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-rents-lettings-and-tenancies .
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of living in temporary accommodation on the health, well-being and life chances of children.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
England has a strong homelessness safety net, providing protection to the most vulnerable in our society. Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head.
Homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation as the law was changed in 2012 allowing councils to place families in private rented accommodation meaning less time in temporary accommodation. The cost of temporary accommodation varies depending on the local housing market and the type of temporary accommodation used as well as the numbers of households in temporary accommodation.
We provide a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant to local authorities for them to use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
Devolving the funding to local authorities provides incentives to move families out of temporary accommodation and into settled accommodation more quickly, and with more certain upfront funding local authorities are able to tackle homelessness more pro-actively, pushing the balance of the investment away from crisis intervention and towards prevention.
The number of children living in temporary accommodation is down from its peak in 2006 but we know there is room for improvement. That is why Government is committed to setting up a homelessness reduction taskforce that will focus on prevention and affordable housing.
Also, from April 2018 we are implementing the most ambitious legislative reform in decades, the Homelessness Reduction Act. It significantly reforms England’s homelessness legislation, ensuring that more people get the help they need earlier to prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the total cost to local authorities of people living in temporary accommodation in 2017-18.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
England has a strong homelessness safety net, providing protection to the most vulnerable in our society. Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head.
Homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation as the law was changed in 2012 allowing councils to place families in private rented accommodation meaning less time in temporary accommodation. The cost of temporary accommodation varies depending on the local housing market and the type of temporary accommodation used as well as the numbers of households in temporary accommodation.
We provide a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant to local authorities for them to use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
Devolving the funding to local authorities provides incentives to move families out of temporary accommodation and into settled accommodation more quickly, and with more certain upfront funding local authorities are able to tackle homelessness more pro-actively, pushing the balance of the investment away from crisis intervention and towards prevention.
The number of children living in temporary accommodation is down from its peak in 2006 but we know there is room for improvement. That is why Government is committed to setting up a homelessness reduction taskforce that will focus on prevention and affordable housing.
Also, from April 2018 we are implementing the most ambitious legislative reform in decades, the Homelessness Reduction Act. It significantly reforms England’s homelessness legislation, ensuring that more people get the help they need earlier to prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to reduce the number of people living in temporary accommodation.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
England has a strong homelessness safety net, providing protection to the most vulnerable in our society. Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head.
Homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation as the law was changed in 2012 allowing councils to place families in private rented accommodation meaning less time in temporary accommodation. The cost of temporary accommodation varies depending on the local housing market and the type of temporary accommodation used as well as the numbers of households in temporary accommodation.
We provide a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant to local authorities for them to use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
Devolving the funding to local authorities provides incentives to move families out of temporary accommodation and into settled accommodation more quickly, and with more certain upfront funding local authorities are able to tackle homelessness more pro-actively, pushing the balance of the investment away from crisis intervention and towards prevention.
The number of children living in temporary accommodation is down from its peak in 2006 but we know there is room for improvement. That is why Government is committed to setting up a homelessness reduction taskforce that will focus on prevention and affordable housing.
Also, from April 2018 we are implementing the most ambitious legislative reform in decades, the Homelessness Reduction Act. It significantly reforms England’s homelessness legislation, ensuring that more people get the help they need earlier to prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place.
Asked by: David Lammy (Labour - Tottenham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to reduce the number of (a) families and (b) children living in temporary accommodation.
Answered by Marcus Jones - Treasurer of HM Household (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Commons)
England has a strong homelessness safety net, providing protection to the most vulnerable in our society. Time spent in temporary accommodation means people are getting help and it ensures no family is without a roof over their head.
Homeless households do not have to wait as long for settled accommodation as the law was changed in 2012 allowing councils to place families in private rented accommodation meaning less time in temporary accommodation. The cost of temporary accommodation varies depending on the local housing market and the type of temporary accommodation used as well as the numbers of households in temporary accommodation.
We provide a Flexible Homelessness Support Grant to local authorities for them to use more strategically to prevent and tackle homelessness. This amounts to £402 million over the two years from 2017/18.
Devolving the funding to local authorities provides incentives to move families out of temporary accommodation and into settled accommodation more quickly, and with more certain upfront funding local authorities are able to tackle homelessness more pro-actively, pushing the balance of the investment away from crisis intervention and towards prevention.
The number of children living in temporary accommodation is down from its peak in 2006 but we know there is room for improvement. That is why Government is committed to setting up a homelessness reduction taskforce that will focus on prevention and affordable housing.
Also, from April 2018 we are implementing the most ambitious legislative reform in decades, the Homelessness Reduction Act. It significantly reforms England’s homelessness legislation, ensuring that more people get the help they need earlier to prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place.