Private rented housing “completely depleted”, leaving “forgotten” single homeless people stuck facing years in limbo with no work, no way out, and no hope
Access to low-cost private rented housing across England has become nearly impossible for people living in homelessness accommodation and services, leaving potentially tens of thousands of people stuck in insecure accommodation, without work, and feeling “crushed” and “punished”.
No Access, No Way Out – a new report by independent researcher Becky Rice on behalf of social justice charity Commonweal Housing – reveals the shocking state and scarcity of private rented housing options for single homeless people. It comes following a record surge in rent prices, falling supply at the bottom-end of the market, and a rapid increase in the number of homeless people in-need of low-cost housing.
The research was compiled through interviews with both clients and staff of homelessness services or local authorities, who together chronicle the struggles in accessing the private rented sector (PRS).
With no route to the PRS and systemic barriers to work, homeless but stable individuals are stuck in limbo as they cannot afford to leave their current, often high-cost transitional support services.
A 2022 survey by the homelessness membership charity Homeless Link showed that more than 40 percent of people living in services were ready but unable to move on from their current provision. In the two years since this data was collected, however, new tenancy prices have risen by nearly a fifth, meaning that this figure is likely even higher.
This is compounded by the fact that when people start working, their housing benefit is reduced, and so clients of homelessness services often must stay on Universal Credit as they cannot access a high enough income to cover their rent, creating a poverty trap.
At the same time, the report found that landlords often have a preference for tenants not in work, as they receive guarantees of income directly via a tenant’s benefits payments. One individual with lived experience of this, said: “[The ideal tenant is] someone in a wheelchair who would sit in the corner of the flat, purely someone who will never work again.”
Rising housing costs are not just a barrier to leaving homelessness, but a driver of it too. The end of PRS tenancies is the main reason for homelessness, while homelessness charity St Mungo’s reports an increase in the number of homelessness referrals due to job losses, and even “a lot of workers … making pretty good salaries”.
Meanwhile, as referenced in the report, data from the largest shelter provider in London shows that the number of clients it has moved into the PRS has decreased by almost half (43 percent) over the last three years, despite growing demand for these services.
With no fluid move-on from services – such as hostels or winter shelters – for those ready to live independently, a backlog has rapidly built up. This has left those in-need of services unable to access them due to capacity limits, and therefore having to sleep rough. In 2022, more than two-thirds of services had to reject clients for capacity reasons.
The forthcoming Renters’ Rights Bill announced as part of this year’s Kings’ Speech is set to reform the private rented system, including the abolition of Section 21 no-fault evictions. However, the report calls for the Bill to be robust enough to increase the rights of those who are accessing the cheapest end of the market, including those who have experienced homelessness.
Ashley Horsey, Chief Executive at Commonweal Housing, said: “While much has been said about the private rental market these past two years, particularly from the perspective of ‘Generation Rent’, next-to-nothing is being said or done for those who cannot rent. Their access to independent housing, employment, and a fresh start is denied often by no fault of their own. Before any new legislation starts its passage through Parliament, those living on the margins and forgotten before must be given centre stage.
“The solutions to the problems that Becky Rice has highlighted and so powerfully articulated by those working with and struggling in this broken system can and must be addressed. We now call on colleagues in the sector and across policy to bring forward a coordinated and cross-departmental set of measures to ensure that everyone can access work, and a safe, secure and affordable home.”
Please follow the link for more information on the report, including key findings and recommendations on our website here >>
Full quotations can be found in the full version of the report.
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