Council accused of 'intimidating' homeless families

Families living in temporary accommodation have accused a south London council of making "intimidating" unannounced home visits which they say left them fearing eviction.

Housing Action Southwark and Lambeth (HASL) said some families have had unannounced visits from Lambeth Council's housing officers, while others received unexpected emails about being moved far outside London.

The housing campaign group claimed the council's efforts to reduce the temporary accommodation costs have created a "confusing and stressful" environment.

Lambeth Council said it had a duty to visit families in temporary accommodation to inspect housing conditions and to help them find long-term, stable homes.

In November, the council announced that most homeless households would need to be placed outside the borough, and often beyond the south east of England, due to a lack of suitable accommodation locally.

The move followed a major review of its Placement Policy, which had remained largely unchanged for more than a decade.

The cost of temporary accommodation in Lambeth has risen to more than £100m a year, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS). The council must find £183m in savings over four years.

It has so far identified £99m, with a further £84m still to be found before March 2026.

The number of homeless households supported by the council has increased by about 50% in the past two years, with more than 4,600 households now being housed in temporary accommodation each night.

Two homeless households spoke anonymously to the LDRS about their experiences.

One resident, who has been a member of HASL for three years, said the council contacted her to say she and her family had to leave their temporary accommodation and find a home in the private rented sector.

The woman said they were given 56 days to secure a private rental, leaving them feeling "stressed and under pressure".

Another resident said she believed she was being forced to leave her temporary accommodation after what she described as "intimidating" visits from housing officers.

She said: "If Elizabeth Wyatt from HASL was not with me, I would be really, really scared, I don't know the law, I don't know anything but because of Liz and the group I don't feel scared like before.

"I've been bidding for nearly eight-and-a-half years – what is the point in taking me from here to somewhere outside of London? I think that's what they want to do with us.

"I asked the council why would you want to do that? They told me it's very expensive here, it's very expensive in London."

In October, HASL staged a protest outside Lambeth Civic Centre and attempted to deliver a letter calling on the council to stop making what it described as "unannounced and intimidating visits".

The group claims the council refused to accept the letter.

Wyatt from HASL said: "We were shocked when we heard reports of housing officers making unannounced visits to our members in temporary accommodation."

She said members were "left believing they would be imminently evicted" while another family was told by email they would be sent to Dover.

She also criticised the council's use of what she described as "private sector discharge" - where homeless households are given mandatory offers of private rented housing.

"This policy, which Lambeth Council has never used before, creates a cycle of homelessness and undermines vital homeless rights," she said.

Lambeth Council's deputy leader and cabinet member for housing, Danny Adilypour, said the authority was working "compassionately" to support homeless families.

The Labour councillor said the council was "doing what we can" to build new affordable homes on council-owned land but the "scale of the crisis means that is not enough" after decades of falling social housing stock.

"This crisis is a tragedy for every family affected and is placing unsustainable pressure on council budgets," Adilypour said.

He said the council was prioritising the limited social housing available in Lambeth for those with the greatest need, but in most cases had to look outside the borough for permanent homes.

"Despite the challenges we are determined to give homeless households the stability and security they desperately need by giving them longer-term placements in areas that will meet their family, cultural and community needs," he added.

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