Towards a Housing System that Puts People First: What We Need to Secure a Healthier, Fairer Future in Temporary Accommodation

At Justlife, we envision a housing system that is equitable, healthy, and centred around the idea of a ‘home’— not simply an asset, but a foundation for life. We believe that temporary accommodation (TA) should be an emergency solution used for no longer than six weeks, always managed by local authorities and designed to meet the diverse and intersecting needs of those experiencing homelessness.

In this vision, TA would not leave families or individuals housed in substandard conditions like Bed & Breakfasts. Sadly this is far from the reality for most residents of TA.

New figures out today show us that 18,380 households were living in B&B accommodation, up 30.5% from last year. Of these, 3,770 households with dependent children had been resident for more than the statutory limit of 6 weeks, up 16.4% from the previous quarter alone.

This of course is only about 15% of the record breaking 123,100 households, including nearly 160,000 children in various forms of TA, the majority of which will be inadequate. More than 31.0% were in accommodation in a different local authority area. That is nearly 39,000 households away from schools, family and support structures.

While the numbers are stark, they don’t reveal the messy and unpredictable reality of what this looks like on the ground. Our frontline workers can help plug this gap. They support people across Manchester and Brighton & Hove who are experiencing homelessness, to get through a range of challenging situations.

This includes supporting people while living in TA with their mental and physical health, finances, safety, addiction and engaging with services; Supporting people to move out of TA and into sustainable, settled accommodation of their own; And finally to recover from homelessness once in settled accommodation, find themselves and regain a sense of dignity and purpose.

This is sometimes called the homelessness journey, although that makes it sound more linear and pleasant than it tends to be. 16 of our frontline support workers told us what they see on this journey.

While the standards vary in the TA that our frontline workers visit, they are generally described in stark negative terms as a place you wouldn’t want to spend any amount of time if you had a choice.

Across 16 interviews, these were the words used to describe TA: Unsafe, inappropriate, noisy, lots of damp, leaks, infestations, the bare minimum, disrepair, lawless, unsanitary, chaotic, dingy, frightening, unregulated, hazard to health, room for exploitation and abuse, lacking in basic facilities, like something from a Dickens novel, and full of people with high levels of different needs mixing in a small space.

This is neither safe nor healthy. The challenges faced by those living in temporary accommodation constitute a crisis. When you think of a crisis, you generally think of something short term, but this can go on for years with very little support. We must act immediately to improve the lives of people in TA, while also working towards long-term solutions that will end the reliance on this inadequate form of emergency housing.

While we work towards systemic change, Justlife calls for three immediate changes: Better standards and enforcement, Improved support for TA residents, and Essential welfare reforms. These suggestions have been developed through various consultations with people with lived experience of staying in TA, as well as people supporting them, through the Better Vision for TA research.

This is what we call for in more detail:

The bare minimum standards must have basic living essentials, including:

• Security and Privacy, e.g. working locks on doors and placements made with safeguarding in mind.
• Space for each member of the household to have their own bed to sleep in.
• Cooking facilities to ensure residents can eat healthy meals.
• Wi-Fi for accessing services and staying connected.
• Adequate storage for personal belongings.
• Laundry facilities to maintain hygiene.
• Information and support to navigate the housing system.

• Better communication between housing officers and households in TA is vital. People should never feel left in the dark about their housing status.
• An effective notification system between relevant services must be implemented to ensure residents receive the coordinated support they need. Information should be readily available to help homeless households understand their rights and options.

• Link Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates at least 50% of current market rents to ensure benefits are adequate to cover housing costs no matter what local authority a household is from.
• Lift the housing benefit subsidy rates from outdated 2011 levels to reflect current rent levels.
• End the two-child benefit cap that restricts low-income families from accessing sufficient support. No one should be punished by a system that fails to meet their basic needs.

The current state of temporary accommodation is unacceptable. For too long, those living in TA have suffered in silence—trapped in a cycle of instability, insecurity, and poverty. We cannot wait any longer. The government must commit to building social housing and implement immediate reforms to ensure TA is safe, humane, and fit for purpose.

At Justlife, we are ready to lead the way, but we need the support of policymakers, local authorities, and housing providers to turn this vision into a reality. Let’s ensure that no one is left behind, and that temporary accommodation is a stepping stone to a better life, not a trap that keeps people stuck in poverty and homelessness.