Temporary Accommodation Strategy and Policy
Consultation has concluded
The consultation on the Temporary Accommodation Strategy 2025–2030 has now closed. Feedback from residents with lived experience of Temporary Accommodation, as well as from partners and stakeholders, has been carefully considered and has informed the final version of the Strategy.
The Council took a wide but carefully focused approach to consultation, showing its commitment to working together with people who use services and the staff who support them. Most of the engagement was with people currently living in Temporary Accommodation and the organisations that work with them. With support from Changing Futures Associates, the Council spoke directly to people through face‑to‑face interviews, drop‑in sessions, and visits to Temporary Accommodation sites and hotels, as well as through this online consultation. This helped make sure that the views of people facing multiple and complex challenges, alongside feedback from frontline staff and key partners played a direct role in shaping the final Strategy and related policy.
Thank you for your interest in the Strategy. The Temporary Accommodation Strategy 2025–2030, which sets out our priorities and approach to delivering the Council’s housing ambitions for people in Temporary Accommodation, can be downloaded at: Housing and accommodation strategies | Sheffield City Council.
If you would like to find out more about how the Strategy is being delivered, or if you are interested in being involved in its delivery, please contact the Strategic Housing Service at HousingStrategy@sheffield.gov.uk or call 0114 273 6396.
What is the Temporary Accommodation Strategy?
Sheffield City Council has drafted a new Temporary Accommodation Strategy, and we want to hear your views on it. Your feedback will be used to develop the final Strategy. The strategy explains our plan for providing Temporary Accommodation for the next 5 years.
Sheffield is a vibrant city with a growing and diverse population. Housing plays a crucial role in the city's success, serving as the foundation of our health, happiness, and prosperity. However, like other cities Sheffield is experiencing very high demand for housing, including affordable homes and not everyone has access to a safe, secure home which increases the risk of homelessness.
Sheffield City Council is required to give advice to anyone who is facing homelessness, and we have a legal duty to provide Temporary Accommodation to those that are eligible, homeless, and in priority need.
This Strategy sets out how we plan to
- reduce the number of households placed in emergency Temporary Accommodation.
- make sure the accommodation that is provided is suitable and cost effective for both the customer and the Council.
- end the reliance of using Bed and Breakfast (B&Bs) and other nightly paid accommodation,
- improve case and property management, and increase housing options and support services.
Placing people in B&Bs and other short-term accommodation is expected to cause a £6.6m pressure on the Council’s budget in 2024/25. We must follow the Government’s statutory guidance which says families should not be in a B&B for more than 42 days. Because we do not have enough Temporary Accommodation sometimes families have to stay longer than this. B&Bs lack essential facilities, such as kitchens and laundry, and aren't suitable for family life, with no play areas for children and little privacy. This unstable environment harms children's mental health, education, and development. It is therefore essential that we end the use of B&Bs.
So that we can do this quickly, we are planning to use more of our own Council Housing in the next 2 years. We currently use about 450 of our properties for Temporary Accommodation. This would only be a temporary increase so we have time to do more to prevent homelessness and provide suitable accommodation in the longer term. This will mean about 200 fewer properties would be available for permanent rehousing in total. We let about 2700 homes every year.
The draft Temporary Accommodation Policy outlines how Sheffield City Council will allocate and manage temporary accommodation, including procurement and placements, both within and outside the area of Sheffield.
The Policy will help deliver the goals of the draft Temporary Accommodation Strategy 2025-2030 and the Homelessness Prevention and Rough Sleeping Strategy 2023-2028.
