Housing need

Even after the controversial culling of Camden’s housing waiting list in 2015 (when it was the worst in the whole of London) Camden’s waiting list for housing has practically doubled from 2018 when it was 3,074, to 2019 when it is 5,991.

https://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/households-local-authority-waiting-list-borough

A social housing estate within a neighbourhood is a close-knit community; invisible lines of love and support help people cope with life living on a low income. Regeneration and demolition can break up this support network and damage lives, as a recent report has shown.  New homes seem like a good idea but can lead to more problems. A report by LSE identifies these issues: http://www.lse.ac.uk/cities/Assets/Documents/2020-LSE-Density-Report-digital.pdf

Housing need will get worse now there is a global recession.  Lots of people in West Kentish Town need homes. Many are on the waiting list, work hard and are mainly key workers. They will be able to pay council rent on homes – so a return on investment will be had. The model must now switch away from ‘private to pay for public’, especially as this less reliable due to pandemic/recession, to investment in the people of Camden. 

We are concerned that most of the 50- 60 overcrowded families living on the estate will not be able to be rehoused on West Kentish Town estate for 7-10 years, due to delay caused by Covid. They are our neighbours and part of our community.  We think that this is an unacceptable time period for families to be in unsuitable accommodation and we urge Camden to investigate options for rehousing them elsewhere as a matter of urgency.