LGA warns of rise in homelessness spending

The Local Government Association (LGA) has warned that the percentage of councils’ total housing budget which is being spent on homelessness and temporary accommodation has more than tripled since 2015.

The LGA is calling on the next government to relieve pressure on council budgets by resetting the relationship between local and national government.

Recent analysis by the LGA has revealed that council spending on homelessness as a share of total housing expenditure for 2023/24 when compared with 2015/16 has increased by 43 percentage points, the equivalent of about £733 million.

According to the data, councils were expecting to to spend £315 million on homelessness in 2015/16, compared with £1.048 billion in 2023/24.

It was also revealed that in 2015/16, 18 per cent of councils' total housing budgets were allocated to homelessness, whereas in 2023-24 spending on homelessness now accounts for 60 per cent of total housing budgets.

The LGA is calling on the next government to give councils and combined authorities the powers to build more affordable, good quality homes at scale for people in the areas where they are needed.

Cllr Claire Holland, housing spokesperson for the Local Government Association said: “Homelessness pressures on councils are spiralling as a larger proportion of their budgets is put towards costly temporary accommodation due to a lack of social housing.

“The way to properly resolve the issue is to address the shortage of suitable housing across the country and build up councils’ stock of social housing.

“Councils need to be given the powers and resources to build affordable homes their communities need so they can resume their historic role as a major builder of affordable homes.”