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News in Brief 155: April – May 2025

April 01 2025
News in brief by the Pavement Team


Empty homes

Westminster Council wants to seize control of homes left empty for longer than six months, in order to repurpose them for temporary accommodation. In March, the Evening Standard reported the council believes it will spend £140m on temporary accommodation for people experiencing homelessness. An estimated 11,000 properties in the borough are sitting empty. Town hall research has shown two properties in the borough, both owned by individuals based in Qatar, have not been lived in for 20 years. The council is calling for a change in the law to allow local authorities to take control of private properties when they are empty for longer than six months.



The first homes at Allia’s Chelmsford site. © Allia Future Homes
Turning point: The first homes of a £3m supported housing project for homeless people in Chelmsford were built in February. CHESS Homeless, in partnership with Allia Future Homes, is delivering 24 housing units, designed to be stayed in for an average 18-month stay before residents move on to permanent housing. The project is built on a former motel site and access to supportive services will be available to residents. CHESS Homeless believes the site could help up to 1,000 homeless people into secure, permanent housing over the project’s lifetime.


In other news

  • Lambeth Council in London made 160 households homeless using Section 21 no-fault evictions, in order to make room for other households currently in temporary accommodation, according to an issue of Private Eye in February.
  • The 2025 London Planning Committee Report has outlined the London boroughs doing their best to alleviate the housing crisis and highlighted those found wanting. Leading the way, Ealing approved 5,391 new homes in 2024, an impressive 158% of its annual target. Meanwhile, Left Foot Forward found Westminster had approved just 39 homes and Wandsworth only 181 (while rejecting 440).
  • Regions in England fear they may lose millions in homeless prevention funding under new government plans. The Evening Standard reported in March that a new formula for distributing the homeless prevention could leave councils outside of London worse off, while London boroughs receive an average 10% increase to their grant. Among the councils worse off, Hastings faces cuts worth £750,000 thanks to the new formula.



An artwork from the One Roof festival show in January © the Pavement
Arts event: The annual One Roof festival took place in late January at the Old Diorama Arts Centre (ODAC) in London, with the Pavement glad to attend the closing exhibition: a collection of works produced during the festival’s duration. One Roof festival ran a full two-week programme, including workshops organised and facilitated by the Museum of Homelessness, Feedback Theatre and the poet Surfing Sofas. Following the success of the festival, ODAC has launched a full term of events taking place every Friday.
For more information visit: olddiorama.com/oneroof


Funding dilemma

Glasgow City Council’s integration joint board (IJB), the body directing health and social care services, has slammed the government’s lack of funding that has seen the IJB in a £42.5m deficit. The IJB claims the council’s commitment to following a government edict to handle asylum claims speedily has led to more people presenting to the council as homeless. However, according to an IJB report “no additional funding has been provided from the UK Government to support these households”. STV News says a supported living service for the elderly in the city will be stopped in an attempt to save cash. A grim picture of UK life in 2025: potentially life-saving funding for one group of vulnerable people, choose wisely.



The entrance to the soup kitchen at the American International Church. © the Pavement
Soup’s up: A correspondent for the Pavement recently visited the American International Church in central London. Here are Sugianto’s thoughts from his trip: “The soup kitchen is at the back of the church. Be prepared for a long queue. The meal is somewhat okay but it is better to get it than nothing.” Check out the List in the centre pages of the magazine for the church soup kitchen’s opening times and details on other local services.


Talking talk

Prime Minister Keir Starmer blasted the SNP’s record on homelessness in Scotland in a Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) session in late March. According to the Daily Record, Starmer labelled the SNP homelessness record “shameful” in response to a question from Edinburgh East and Musselburgh MP Chris Murray. Murray had asked, “Does the Prime Minister agree with me that there should be no homeless children?” In his response, Starmer reiterated his government’s pledge to “invest £1bn to tackle homelessness, abolish no-fault evictions and build 1.5m new homes.” (Psst, somebody should show him our news item on the previous page detailing Lambeth Council, which is Labour-run, using no-fault evictions to make 160 households homeless). He later challenged the SNP to improve its record, saying “they [the SNP] have the power, the money and now it's time they started delivering.”



George Orwell’s Diaries © the Pavement
The Orwell Foundation’s annual Prize for Reporting Homelessness closed for applications on 31 March. The prize was first awarded in 2023, to celebrate reporting that “shares personal experiences of homelessness in an impactful way and helps to change the national conversation about the issue,” according to The Orwell Foundation’s website. For more information about The Orwell Prize for Reporting Homelessness and how to enter for future awards, visit www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-prizes/about/about-the-prizes/reporting-homelessness


Needs must

A new local homeless strategy has been proposed by West Lothian Council’s Housing Needs manager, Sarah Kelly. Kelly informed West Lothian Council’s Executive at a meeting in march that there has been a 5% increase per year in demand for housing in West Lothian among people aged 16-24. Demand has far outstripped supply since rules on local connection were changed in 2022, allowing people to apply as homeless to any council in Scotland from anywhere in the UK. The new homeless strategy has three priorities, according to Yahoo news: “Ensuring prevention is the first response to reduce homelessness where it is possible and safe to do so; increasing opportunities and improving access to housing supply; and ensuring people who become homeless are supported to achieve long term sustainable outcomes.”



Old copies of the Pavement used to block out light for a ‘darkroom’. © Street Storage
A new entry showcasing the Pavement’s versatility, courtesy of Caroline from Street Storage. The London-based charity converted a room at one of its locations into a temporary darkroom for one of its photography-keen guests, with the help of some spare Pavement mags. Readers will recall last issue featuring a photo of the Pavement being used to balance a table at a day centre. Let us know how the mag has helped you out in a jam: email editor@thepavement.org.uk

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April – May 2025 : Second Chances

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