North Norfolk councillor calls for empty buildings to be repurposed for rough sleepers
A vacant hotel in Stalham and the Milestones hospital in nearby Catfield are amongst buildings that have been considered.
A Norfolk councillor says an empty hotel and vacant hospital should be used to house people facing homelessness.
Matthew Taylor, a Conservative councillor for Stalham questioned whether North Norfolk District Council is doing all it can to tackle the rising costs caused by the need to house people in temporary accommodation.
There are calls for “drastic action” to be taken to avoid a nearly £9m black hole in the next four years.
It comes as the Liberal Democrat-controlled authority is spending £1.3m a year on housing people in B&Bs and hotels after they become homeless, as well as other inflation pressures on its services.
At a full council meeting this week, Mr Taylor said: “As we stare into a near-£9m black hole over the next four years, with huge pressure coming from temporary accommodation, the role of this council becomes utterly important.
“We need to think big and take drastic action to find resolution as soon as possible.”
The NNDC has 62 households in temporary accommodation, which includes 70 children.
Mr Taylor asked whether the authority had considered using a vacant hotel in Stalham and the Milestones hospital in nearby Catfield to house people in need of a home after it was recently given approval to be changed into housing.
Wendy Fredericks, cabinet member for housing and people’s services, said local councils have not been “properly funded for the last 14 years” and that it is doing “everything it possibly can” to address the issue.
She said that NNDC has investigated using the hotel in Stalham but that it was too expensive to refurbish.
She added that the council is doing “incredibly well” to address the problem and that other authorities in the country are seeking advice from them.
Ms Fredericks urged people at risk of homelessness to seek help before it is too late.