Havering Council has moved to tackle the local housing crisis head on with a raft of measures to increase temporary accommodation for local homeless families and individuals.
Cabinet Members approved two papers yesterday (Wednesday 22 January 2025); to introduce temporary modular housing and to consider transforming office space into residential units, as part of our statutory responsibility to our residents.
With the number of families unable to afford to rent privately, due to the continued rise in the cost of renting, alternative good quality options are needed to source properties that support families and individuals most at risk of homelessness.
Given the Council’s financial challenges, more social housing solutions would also alleviate some of the temporary use of costly private accommodation such as hotels and flats let on a nightly basis.
In the last financial year, the Council was forced to overspend its temporary accommodation budget by £6 million.
One proposed approach presented to Cabinet is the development of 18 fully equipped modular home units within the area allocated for the final phase of the Waterloo & Queen Street regeneration scheme, in Romford.
Their introduction will be temporary until the land is developed and is designed to give homeless families more stability.
The net cost to the Council is reduced by the use of Ministry of Housing. Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) grant from their Local Authority Housing Fund.
In a separate paper, Cabinet also approved leasing a vacant office building after it has been converted into good quality residential properties complete with cooking facilities, which can then be used as temporary accommodation within the Council’s own property stock.
Last month, Havering Council’s Cabinet approved another such proposal, Chesham House, a former office and retail building in Romford, and is being refurbished to create 55 residential properties and reduce homelessness pressures, subject to planning consent.
The leasing of another office building named Eastgate House in Basildon was also approved by Cabinet. It will provide a further 34 homes, following its refurbishment, by February 2026, subject to planning consent.
Councillor Natasha Summers, Cabinet Lead for Climate Change and Housing Need, said:
“Like many Council’s across the country, Havering is facing a housing crisis.
“Homelessness due to eviction of tenants from private rental sector is beyond the Council’s control and it is happening more and more, as private landlords sell up as a result of rising taxes, increased mortgage rates and additional obligations on landlords.
“Given the shortage of social housing and the Council’s financial challenges, establishing new cost-effective temporary housing solutions is a priority.
“New approaches such as the leasing of converted office buildings and the development of modular homes at the Waterloo Estate enable us to provide good quality temporary homes for the families and individuals who need them most.”