New temporary accommodation could help house local residents in need
Released: Friday, 08 December 2023
More Adur and Worthing residents with nowhere to live will be able to stay closer to their friends and family under new proposals to reduce the cost of homelessness.
We intend to sign an agreement that would allow up to 37 local people to have roofs over their heads while more permanent homes can be found for them.
Properties in George V Avenue and Goring Road in Worthing would be used to house 14 residents in single rooms with shared kitchen facilities. Another 23 residents would be able to stay at a property in High Street, Littlehampton.
Continuing cost-of-living pressures mean that more and more members of the community are coming to us for housing help. We've joined other local authorities to lobby the government to provide extra financial support to deal with increasing housing costs.
We have an acute shortage of temporary accommodation for locals who would otherwise have nowhere to sleep at night. We're currently having to house more than 450 Adur and Worthing households, of which more than 250 are having to sleep outside the district and borough.
We're building our own temporary accommodation but we also need to find more privately-owned local properties to use.
Some residents are having to be housed many miles away because of the lack of homes for them, which makes it more difficult for them to hold down jobs and get the support of their friends and families. This can cost us up to £200 per household per night.
The increasing cost of housing residents is having a severe impact on our budgets. Using new sites like those being considered in Worthing and Littlehampton would significantly reduce the amount we have to spend, saving hundreds of thousands of pounds a year that could be invested in other services for the community while also allowing the residents to stay in or at least near their home town.
The properties would be for single people and would have on-site managers during office hours and security visits around the clock. The first ones could be occupied next month.
Cllr Carson Albury, Adur’s cabinet member for Adur Homes and customer services, said:
“We urgently need to find more accommodation for the increasing number of our residents who are coming to us needing to be housed.”
Cllr Emma Taylor-Beal, Worthing’s cabinet member for housing and citizen services, said:
“Making sure everyone has a roof over their head at night is our priority. We’re determined to house our citizens as close to their families and friends as possible.”
The Joint Strategic Committee of Adur & Worthing Councils agreed to the proposal at its public meeting at the Shoreham Centre yesterday (Thursday 7th December).
To read the full report visit:
(PR23-176)
Page last updated: 18 April 2024