Police evicted from homes can stay two more months

Families being evicted from subsidised police housing have been granted two more months in the properties so they can find new homes.

They have also had their rents cut by Surrey Police for the time they have left in their lodgings.

Section 21 "no-fault" eviction notices were given to officers across the county, so the force could make houses available to new staff.

It now says it has decided to let tenants stay longer after they raised concerns about the matter, but the force has confirmed the decision to serve the notices remains unchanged.

Residents are now being allowed to stay until 18 July 2026.

Officers had been told to be out by 1 May - the day the Renters' Rights Act comes in.

The Act will ban no-fault evictions and end the use of fixed-term tenancies.

Surrey Police said: "This has been a very difficult decision to make, however, to meet the ambition of our future housing strategy, we must ensure we are utilising our housing stock in the fairest way possible for all colleagues within Surrey Police."

Previously, a woman who lives in the housing said: "When we got the letter, our world came crashing down around our ears.

"The reality is we can't afford to swap like-for-like for what is on the private rental market.

"I'm trying to stay positive, but there's nothing to be positive about at the moment."

The Section 21 notices were served by the police and crime commissioner's (PCC) office through a property management company.

PCC Lisa Townsend said in January the "very tough decision" was motivated by a wish to do right by both the "Surrey taxpayer" and the "wider workforce at Surrey Police".

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