Government figures show a net loss of a whopping 16,000 social homes in England last year, as sales and demolitions continue to surpass the number of homes built.
Figures indicate 25,749 social homes were either sold or demolished last year in England, including Sheffield and Manchester, yet just 9,500 social homes were built – a net loss of 16,188 homes.
In the past 10 years there has been a total loss of 181,213 social homes and this is despite 1.28m households in England being stuck on council waiting lists for a social home.
This follows news that the government is considering plans to further restrict access to social housing for some through their ‘British homes for British workers’ scheme, rather than acknowledging the overall lack of social homes. Currently, 90 per cent of social homes are let to British citizens.
Responding to the figures Matt Downie, Crisis chief executive, says: “It’s disgraceful to see the number of social homes continue to be decimated. This is robbing over a million households stuck on council waiting lists of the opportunity of a safe home.
“This scarcity of social homes means that many councils are running out of options with some even having to consider closing waiting lists due to demand. With nowhere else to go, tens of thousands of households are being forced into poor quality temporary accommodation like hostels and B&Bs or the private rental market, putting them at risk from rouge landlords
“The system is at breaking point. We need to see a major programme of social housebuilding reaching at least 90,000 homes per year if we are to tackle homelessness for good.”
What are your thoughts? Do you think we are near to breaking point? If so, what can we do about this?
Why Bruce & Simpson?
IT’S SIMPLE – WE ARE DIFFERENT…
No other Property Management company anywhere offers what we do. The work we do isn’t a job, it’s a passion.
We want to offer our customers the best there is, and with our personalised service and unique partnership with our service team – Work With Group – we offer the complete package under one roof.
Independent. Proactive. Professional.
Our customer reviews
By chance we came across Sandie at Bruce Simpson, having always used “bigger” more well known companies before when needing to find tenants for our rental properties. Never again. The service far exceeded our expectations and went over and beyond, it was worth every penny of the more than reasonable fee payable. Sandie did everything Haybrooks did not. She achieved more in one week than they did in one month, keeping us posted in a kind and friendly way every step of the way. Bruce Simpson excels in providing a personal service, covering every aspect needed effortlessly. Thank you. 100% would recommend to landlords and tenants alike.
I have been working with Bruce & Simpson for nearly a year now. Great communication, fills rooms quickly and solves any problems that arise with tenants!
After feeling disgruntled by the treatment of the high street agent we were using to find new tenants and manage the properties, I was introduced to Sandie and was impressed by her passion and “thinking outside the box” attitude to marketing my properties. Nothing is too much trouble and any maintenance issues are dealt with straight away. Very happy
