Homelessness up by 70% in Wiltshire, council figures show

Council leader Richard Clewer emphasised that homelessness does not necessarily mean people are sleeping on the street

Homelessness in Wiltshire has risen by 70% over the past year, according to council figures.

Wiltshire Council cabinet member for housing Phil Alford said the number of households in temporary accommodation had risen from 85 to 179 in 12 months.

Council leader Richard Clewer said the increase was primarily down to the private rented housing market being "broken" and too expensive.

"We're not expecting that demand to ease off anytime soon," he added.

The council's overview and scrutiny management committee heard that there had been a surge in demand for temporary accommodation.

Mr Clewer said: "The reason temporary accommodation has increased is because the number of people on the housing register has gone up significantly and because, let's be blunt, the private rental market is now completely broken."

Councillor Ian Thorn said there had to be more that Wilshire could do to support homeless people.

"We're one of the wealthiest countries in the world and, bluntly, there's no excuse for people to be homeless in the UK," added Mr Thorn.

Properties 'just not there'

Mr Clewer said it had become harder to find appropriate accommodation, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

"We used to be able to find local housing allowance, affordable properties across much of Wiltshire, but they're just not there now.

"One of the tasks that we've given our officers is to acquire more temporary accommodation so that we're able to meet that demand without having to rely on bed and breakfasts for temporary accommodation," he added.

Mr Alford said the council was monitoring the situation closely and that "none of these households were rough sleeping"

In January Wiltshire was granted £2.2m in government funding to help prevent homelessness.