Homelessness is the way to win the housing argument

By Hannah Fearn, freelance journalist specialising in social affairs

After being used to churning out words as fast as possible for daily newspapers, it’s a strange discipline to now be writing a column for a quarterly magazine. Every time I select a subject, I need to be sure it’ll still be relevant in a few weeks’ time. But by the time you see these words, two things will certainly be true.

First, we’re now at the start of a new political era. We have a Labour government with a huge mandate for policy change. That means most housing leaders are focusing their attention on building strong working relationships with the incoming administration, abandoning any pretence of caring about the rest. Second, there’s a housing crisis. It’s been brewing for three decades and isn’t going anywhere.

Your knowledge and expertise is in demand, but as Labour settles into power for the first time in a decade and a half it’ll be fighting for precedence alongside experts and advocates for health, energy and climate change, foreign affairs and overseas development and a host of other crucial, immediate investment areas.

Homelessness might be the way in. The latest statistics were devastating. More than 317,430 people are homeless or threatened with homelessness across England, including a record 145,000 of children living in emergency accommodation.

Among the most significant causes of homelessness are no-fault evictions. That involved 10,000 evictions between April and December 2023 motivated by the opportunity to relet (some might call that greed), but a larger number (23,000) simply wanted to sell their asset, as is their right.

“In its dying days the Conservative government tried to rally its base on the right of the electorate with some strange reforms to rough sleeping legislation”

So, it’s not just personal or economic crises but also the ordinary operation of the housing market as it currently functions (or doesn’t) that’s driving constantly rising homelessness rates. And that’s costing us all poorly. You don’t need reminding that for some local authorities the cost of providing emergency and temporary accommodation is now swallowing up to 50% of their budgets, and rising. It’s a prime driver of council tax bill increases, and it’s a direct cause of very visible and irritating local issues, such as potholes. If you sort out the sharp end of the housing crisis, you also inadvertently start to address the sort of low-key political grumbles that make voters feel like the country is being poorly run. If you’re an incoming government with a strong majority keen to make voters feel they made the right choice, it’s a very good place to start. It’s an open door for housing lobbyists looking to make the case for the wider social housing sector.

Meanwhile, most ordinary voters don’t understand the differences between rough sleeping and broader forms of homelessness. In its dying days the Conservative government tried to rally its base on the right of the electorate with some strange reforms to rough sleeping legislation. Amendments under consideration during the debating of the Criminal Justice Bill suggested making it possible for police to issue fines to rough sleepers or move them on if they are causing a “nuisance” – which could include simply smelling a little bad.

Under any conditions these proposals would be inhumane; in our current economic climate, with such an acute shortage of housing options, it’s a cruelty. Happily, many people intervened over the proposed legislation to say so.

So, here’s another opportunity: by taking a strong stance on homelessness, Labour can separate themselves from the unspeakable brutality of the last days of Conservatism. It’s a point of clear division; a fresh start.

If you want to win the bigger argument on housing, then start with the sharpest end of the crisis. Start with homelessness.