Here in the UK, the new Labour government has an enormous responsibility to combat the homelessness crisis that has progressively worsened in the last few years.
With record numbers of families in temporary accommodation, dwindling social housing numbers, and sky-high rental prices, there’s a tremendous amount of work to be done. It’s not going to be without its challenges.
Since the election in July 2024, our team has been closely monitoring the government's plans with interest. Let’s take a look.
Manifesto promises - what were they?
In June, the Labour party released their manifesto ahead of their general election win and entrance into number 10. Key things to take away from their list of plans and promises were:
- A pledge to create a cross-government strategy, working closely with mayors and councils to deliver ‘the biggest increase in affordable social housing we’ve seen in a generation’
- To review Right to Buy discounts and build new social rented homes
- To end ‘no-fault’ evictions and empower tenants to tackle unreasonable rent increases by extending ‘Awaab’s Law’ in the private rental sector
What challenges are Labour facing?
Housing shortage and temporary accommodation
Labour has pledged to impose stricter planning obligations on the construction of 1.5 million new homes in this parliament. However, it’s not currently clear what percentage of these new builds will be social housing.
A number of housing associations have since contacted the government warning them that these targets will be almost impossible to meet without an urgent injection of funding to combat the financial pressures they face.
With over 100,000 families living in temporary accommodation at the end of 2023, Labour must commit to housing those in temporary accommodation. The number of families facing homelessness due to inflation and the cost of living crisis means that this commitment will need to be the highest it’s been in decades.
In the short term, there are calls on Labour to at least improve living standards within temporary accommodation, even if it’s not yet possible to rehouse the individuals and families so reliant on it permanently.
Affordability
There’s a huge question mark over how Labour will tackle affordability, both in rental and homeownership.
For many commentators, the Conservative government's impact on social housing has been undeniable. Council-owned homes have consistently been sold off to private owners, who can dictate the prices and ultimately undermine the social housing model.
Currently, as many as 40% of the ‘right to buy’ houses end up on private rental markets at prices significantly higher than any a local authority would set. This has played a significant part in the unavailability of social housing.
The future of the Right to Buy scheme
There are many thoughts and opinions about the Right to Buy scheme, which lets council house tenants buy their property at a highly discounted rate. Labour MPs have eluded to reducing these discounts slowly until they are virtually nonexistent, essentially phasing out the scheme altogether. The hope is that this will reduce the number of people exploiting the scheme and using it to make a profit,
The full extent of Labour’s plans for the UK’s housing still remains to be seen outside their ambitious building plans. Along with many other organisations and charities in our sector, we’ll be keeping a keen eye on the progress.
If you’re concerned about homelessness, need housing support, or would like to know more about how you can get involved with Simon on the Streets, please contact us now.