More than 4,000 households in Leicester are on the register for a new home because they are officially classed as overcrowded.
A staggering total of 6,366 individuals and families were on Leicester City Council’s housing register at the end of the 20/21 financial year.
And 4,003 of them need to move to a bigger home due to the number of people living there.
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Due to the sheer number of overcrowded homes on the register, Leicester City Council introduced three separate categories for overcrowding in its homes – critical, severe, and regular overcrowding.
In a report, put to the Housing Scrutiny Commission earlier this week, it showed that 460 households either had critical or severe overcrowding, meaning that they needed a house with two bedrooms or more to live comfortably.
The remaining 3,543 households need either a single bedroom or have reached maximum capacity in their home.
To make matters worse, those needing a house or property bigger than one bedroom face long waiting times.
In the most urgent band on the housing register, people needing a two or three bedroom house still wait, on average, nine months before they can get the house they need.
This goes up to 14 months if they need a home that is four bedrooms or more.
If they are a household in the second-most urgent band, the wait then jumps to an average of a 29 month wait for two-bedroom houses, with a 45 month wait for a three-bedroom house, and a 38 month wait for a four-bedroom house.
But anyone needing a one-bedroom property has a lot less time to wait, with the most urgent band having an average of a six month wait, while the second-most urgent band having an average of a nine month wait.
These figures are largely due to the council’s focus on at-risk people through the coronavirus pandemic – especially looking to house those that are homeless or at-risk of homelessness.
Of the 6,366 households on the housing register, 1,157 of them were either homeless or at risk of homelessness, and Leicester City Council has been prioritising this group more than others – along with those facing domestic violence and referrals from Adult Social Care and Children’s Services.
There were 980 people rehomed in 20/21, with 517 of those people being either homeless or at risk of homelessness (53 per cent).
Overall, those in the most urgent band were given the most homes – 660 in total – while the second most-urgent band received 278 homes, and the least urgent received 42 homes.
The new figures also show that 291 less houses were let out in 20/21 compared with 19/20 – which Leicester City Council has blamed on the coronavirus pandemic.
The council’s report says that they expect the figures to recover in the 2021/22 financial year.
They also said that they focused on those in critical housing and believe they “no doubt saved lives during the pandemic” by doing so.
In the scrutiny commission meeting Justin Haywood, Service Manager for Partnerships and Housing at Leicester City Council, acknowledged they need to “marginally” increase the houses let in the two lesser urgent housing bands.
However, he ensured the council that despite the pandemic, the figures for people needing new homes had remained relatively steady over the past two years. Mr Haywood added this suggests the register is doing its job, and that the main reason for long waiting times is the supply of available housing.
Leicester City Council’s report on the issues blame the coronavirus pandemic for the majority of issues with distributing homes to those on the housing register – saying that it expect the figures to recover in the 2021/22 financial year.
They also said that they focused on those in critical housing and believe they “no doubt saved lives during the pandemic” by doing so.
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