Temporary housing costs council more than £500k

A council has said providing temporary accommodation for its residents cost it 85% over its budget in 2023.

West Devon Borough Council earmarked just under £300,000 to house families at risk of homelessness, but expenditure rose to more than £500,000.

Mandy Ewings, council leader and independent member for Tavistock, told a hub committee the authority was in a "better position than most" as it had the "lowest number of people in temporary accommodation" in Devon.

The council said there were currently 14 households in temporary accommodation, made up of 12 single people and two families.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said in the neighbouring council area of Torridge, government figures showed 60 households were in temporary accommodation at the end of 2023. This included 104 children.

In the South Hams area, the figure was 34 households, including 20 children; while in north Devon there were 78 households, half of which had "dependent children".

Mr Ewings said west Devon had “got off lightly”, and that some councils, particularly unitary authorities, which had large adult social care and children’s services costs, were close to going bankrupt.

“It’s hitting councils really, really hard and something needs to be done, because it is something we have to pay for but we don’t really get anything back to help us pay for it," she added.

The council said it converted a property in Plymouth Road into three flats. It also purchased nine homes for refugees to use in the future across the borough, with help from the Local Authority Housing Fund.

Local authorities claimed buying properties was a "more cost-effective way of providing temporary housing" than placing people in B&Bs and hotels, said the LDRS.

Despite the rising costs, West Devon Borough Council said it ended the year with a surplus of £149,000 from its £8.5m budget, which would go into its unearmarked reserves which now stand at £1.7m.

Andy Bates, chief executive, said it was a "long way from getting to the peak" of the "demand-led issue".

He added: “I think it will continue to be a pressure on our finances for the next 12 months to two years.

"Until our own plans progress and we find out how the new government plans to deal with housing, we need to keep a sharp eye.

“So far we have not been impacted as much as others.”

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