Growing number of Leeds families living in 'desperate situations'

We've been told a housing crisis in Leeds is leaving more and more families in 'desperate situations'.

Our exclusive figures show more than 26,000 people are on the register for a council house, the third highest number in the country, with the average three-bed home getting more than 540 bids.

Many others who do have a council house are dealing with disrepair, with the city council seeing reports of damp and mould double at the end of last year.

We went to meet one family in the East End Park area who have been waiting more than three months for the leak in their children’s bedroom ceiling to be fixed:

The council says it has apologised to the tenant for the delays in completing the repairs. It adds that the roof is now fixed and it is working with the tenant to complete some associated repair work.

Las month the campaign group ACORN staged a protest at a council meeting claiming that housing was in a ‘state of chaos’ across the board, both in the public and private sector.

We spoke to Shereen Rebla, a housing caseworker at charity Better Leeds, about the issues contributing to the situation. She provides advice and casework on housing issues and is thought to be the only one of her kind in Leeds.

LACK OF HOUSING

A general shortage of homes and suitable places to put people is a major part of the problem according to Shereen:

“It just seems to be getting worse and worse. We’re getting a lot of people now who are saying they’re trying to find private rented options and they’ve looked and looked and looked and they can’t find anything.

“Three to four years ago you could get private rented lists or go down to estate agents and they’d give you loads of options. Those options just aren’t there anymore. Everyone you speak to, they’re saying that when you go to a property there’s 12-15 people all trying to get this one house.”

Our exclusive figures reveal nearly a thousand council homes are lying empty due to disrepair, while more than 26,000 people are on the Leeds housing register looking to be rehoused. The average waiting time stands at 118 weeks, up from 92 weeks in 2018.

Meanwhile the number of households in England living in temporary accommodation has topped 100,000 for the first time in almost 20 years according to the latest government statistics.

The figures also show the number of families with children who are being housed in B&Bs has more than doubled.

In Leeds, 129 households were living in temporary accommodation at the end of 2022, including 57 who were housed in B&Bs. Of those, 16 of them had children.

“(The council) were trying not to do it but I’m seeing that they are putting families in B&Bs now,” says Shereen.

“They can do it but it should be a last resort and for a maximum of six weeks.”

RENT, REPAIRS AND ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOUR

Other tenants are being driven from their homes by issues including rent hikes, disrepair and antisocial behaviour.

As the cost of living crisis sees mortgage repayments continue to rise, many private tenants are seeing landlords putting up the rent. Shereen says many are being priced out of their homes in this way, with the average rent increase around £200-300 a month.

The highest increase she’s dealt with was a tenant whose rent had been increased by £450 a month.

Others are struggling with issues like damp and mould, both in private and social housing, and Shereen says she’s seeing families living in ‘shocking situations’:

“The issue is that councils are short-staffed with no money. I know when I’ve spoken to them a few times, there’s just been a massive backlog. I’ve been ringing and ringing and ringing saying ‘this client’s got damp and disrepair, they’re in a terrible situation’ – and they say they’re on the list and they’re dealing with urgent first.”

Reports of damp and mould in Leeds council housing more than doubled at the end of last year, with the council setting up a new team to help deal with the issue.

Shereen says another major problem forcing people out of their homes is antisocial behaviour.

“We’re seeing ridiculous amounts of antisocial behaviour to such an extreme where families are just being harassed out of estates,” she says.

“Just continuous threats and violence by gangs of youths. And the clients are just told ‘ring the antisocial behaviour team’.”

LACK OF LEGAL SUPPORT

It’s claimed another major issue impacting tenants is a lack of legal options to help them challenge their landlord if they feel they have been treated unfairly. At a time where the number of people needing help with housing issues is going up, it’s feared the help available to them is seemingly decreasing.

Leeds council does not have a law centre in the same way as other parts of West Yorkshire, and cuts to legal aid mean many law firms have stopped taking on housing cases. Shereen says she only knows of one solicitor in the city who is still accepting them.

Last month the Law Society of England and Wales issued a warning about the lack of housing legal aid, with their research claiming that more than 25 million people do not have access to a local legal aid provider for housing advice.

The government launched a review of civil legal aid earlier this year but groups including the Law Society are warning investment is needed now to help people stay in their homes.

WHAT DOES THE COUNCIL SAY?

A Leeds City Council spokesperson said: “Leeds is experiencing unprecedented demand for affordable homes, alongside a national shortage of affordable housing. There are approximately 26,000 applicants on the Leeds Homes Register, with 5,400 in an urgent housing need.

“There are an average of 349 bids for each Council home advertised via Choice Based Lettings, but for a 3-bed house the average number of bids is 544. Consequently, even families who are in an urgent housing need are waiting an average of 45 months before being offered a 3 bed Council house. Leeds has a strong relationship with Leeds based Housing Associations, who rehoused 920 households from the register via nomination agreements in 2021/22.

“Leeds City Council launched its updated housing strategy in 2022, setting out its ambitions for investment in affordable homes and working in partnership in the city to meet housing needs up to 2027. Over the last 5 years Leeds has delivered an average of 484 new affordable homes each year via the Council and housing association partners, and schemes in the pipeline should deliver around 750 new homes each year over the next 3 years.

“Leeds continues to have some of the lowest temporary accommodation figures nationally despite the increasing housing pressures the city is facing. This is achieved through our early intervention model, which in the most recently published figures highlights that Leeds positively prevented homelessness in 75% of cases, compared to a national average of 52.

“The council works closely with any households placed into temporary accommodation to move them out as quickly as possible which is why Leeds has one of the lowest temporary accommodation figures of any comparable city in the UK. We work closely with customers to explore all options including our innovative and successful private rented scheme. We encourage anyone who is in housing need, homeless or threatened with homelessness to make contact with us as soon as possible via e-mail (housing.options@leeds.gov.uk) or for those who are at imminent risk of homelessness via telephone, if out of office hours on 0113 378 8366. Further information can also be found on our website Contact Leeds Housing Options.”