Cash=strapped: Wigan Council needs almost £1m to support young homeless applicants

Councils are obligated to assess anyone who seeks homelessness support. This means issuing a prevention duty, stopping them from becoming homeless if they are deemed to be at risk, or a relief duty, where the authority must help an already homeless applicant secure accommodation for at least six months.

But figures from youth housing and homelessness charity Centrepoint and WPI Economics show more than a third of 16 to 24-year-olds who present as homeless across England went unassessed in the year to March 2023.

It said it is "deeply concerned" councils do not have the required resources to carry out their homeless assessment duties, and called on the Government to address the crisis.

Research from the charity and WPI Economics shows 813 young people presented themselves as homeless to Wigan Borough Council in 2022-23.

But of these, 325 (40 per cent) were not screened.

Using this figure, the charity estimates Wigan Council would need a further £906,000 to cover the costs associated with assessment and support.

Nationally, 120,000 young people presented as homeless in 2022-23, with over 40,000 estimated to have been left without support.

It means councils would need a 15% increase in government funding, equating to a shortfall of around £332 million.

Alicia Walker, head of policy, research and campaigns at Centrepoint said: "Councils have a legal duty to assess anyone who presents as homeless, but we are deeply concerned that they do not have the means to carry out these duties.

"It's not good enough that so many young people are not getting the chance of that assessment, let alone accessing support."

She added: "We can’t just blame councils for this. It’s clear they don’t have the resources to meet the increasing demand for homelessness services, and the Government needs to address this crisis."

A Wigan Council spokesperson said, “Wigan Council has made additional investment in local homelessness services, increasing the range of accommodation options for young people here in our borough which will provide bespoke support to those in need.

“Homelessness is a challenge that councils across the country are facing, and with any additional funding we would further enhance the local opportunities and options for young people across the borough.”

Coun Darren Rodwell, housing spokesperson for the Local Government Association, said councils have repeatedly raised concerns regarding the effect of the rising cost of living, running multiple asylum and resettlement programmes, and an insufficient supply of affordable housing.

Coun Rodwell added: "We urge the Government to address the subsidy gap, so that councils have more money to spend on delivering homelessness and housing support, as well as provide multi-year funding to put towards crucial homelessness prevention activities."

The shortfall predictions are based on the unassessed applicants requiring the same level of support as those already screened.

However, the researchers warn the national shortfall could rise to £425m in a realistic worst-case scenario – including £1.1m in Wigan – should a higher proportion of people require support.

In a more optimistic scenario, the local funding gap drops to £733,000.

A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson said: "We recognise that young people experiencing homelessness face particular challenges, and we want to ensure that they get the support they need.

"That is why we are spending £1.2bn over three years to give councils the funding they need to prevent homelessness and help more people sooner, as well as supporting councils with our dedicated youth homelessness advisor roles."