No homeless families in B&Bs by April – hope

The halt is a major step after numbers peaked at 126 households in emergency accommodation – 73 of which were in guesthouses – 18 months ago.

Councillor Keith Allcock, cabinet member for homes, said Sandwell’s success was due to the council intervening at an early stage to prevent families ending up on the streets.

“Our Housing Solutions Service has been working hard to support people who are at risk of or already homeless,” he said.

He added: “The service has been prioritising the prevention of homelessness and to work with people facing homelessness as soon as possible to try and help them remain in their current home.”

During the pandemic it has helped 3,400 households of which just under eight per cent needed emergency housing.

By the beginning of the Covid outbreak last year, Sandwell had already reduced the number of families in temporary accommodation by a third.

At present, it has 36 families in emergency shelter and housing bosses hope the number will fall to 30 by April with none in B&Bs or hotels.

In the same month Sandwell plans to open more accommodation at Applewood Grove where staff will help people find a new homes as quickly as possible.

Deputy council leader Maria Crompton said: “The service has already made significant improvement to the support available to those at risk of homelessness and continues to deliver against its improvement plan throughout 2021.

“We encourage anyone who is concerned about homelessness to contact us as soon as possible (call 0121 368 1166 – option 2) as the sooner we hear from them the better the chance of being able to keep them in their current home or to help secure a new home without the need for emergency accommodation.”