Evaluating the delivery of temporary accommodation through housing companies
The financial pressures arising from recent spikes in demand for temporary accommodation (TA) has led to councils exploring delivering TA through housing companies to reduce their subsidy loss. Ealing Council commissioned 31ten to assess how this could provide a better financial outcome, as well as consideration of the practical implications of setting up a TA company.
The Role
31ten leveraged specialist knowledge and recent expertise working with other authorities on temporary accommodation projects, to evaluate the use of a wholly owned company to reduce Ealing Council’s subsidy loss. This exercise was comprehensive and covered the following attributes:
- Direct comparison between the proposed and current options to illustrate the annual financial benefit
- Financial forecast to determine savings opportunity over the next 5 years
- Breakeven analysis to interrogate the relationship between additional costs of the wholly owned company and savings
- Company structuring, governance, and implementation guidance
- Indicative timeline and steps to be undertaken by the Council, should they proceed with this option, including analysis of lease periods and transition
- Examples of similar solutions undertaken by other councils
- Wider consideration of the temporary accommodation strategy and other potential solutions to be considered in tandem to address the financial pressures faced by the Council
Altogether, this provided a comprehensive view of the proposed option, practical considerations of its implementation, and insight into how this option can be most effective when combined with a consortium of solutions, aligned by a temporary accommodation strategy.
Key Outcomes
31ten’s assessment established the size of the financial benefit possible for the Council, including practical implications of carrying out this option, timeframes and next steps. Alternative solutions were also proposed as options to be considered. Altogether, 31ten recommended accessing a range of levers for the Council to build a temporary accommodation strategy aimed to enhance this provision while minimising cost pressures. With this information, Ealing can begin establishing a temporary accommodation strategy, business case, and business plan.
