New research shows that Enfield is one of the worst performing outer London boroughs for building new Social Rent housing, and is the worst if levels of poverty are factored in.
Social Rent housing is more affordable than the private sector and tends to provide a more stable and secure tenancy. Families living in Social Rent housing have more control over their homes and can put down lasting roots in the community.
Our analysis shows that the building of new Social Rent housing in Enfield has been below average for the last 10 years and has fallen sharply since 2018, with more Social Rent homes demolished or lost than were built. The number of additional Social Rent homes built in Enfield in the last 3-years has been less than zero.
Thousands of Social Rent homes now need to be built per year to make up for the shortfall and to meet demand, meanwhile thousands of families are left living in unsuitable housing and in temporary accommodation for years on end. Enfield now has one of the highest rates of homelessness and Temporary Accommodation use in the country, with around 5,000 children living in Temporary Accommodation.
In this paper we examine the reasons for the decline of Social Rent housing in Enfield and set-out the consequences of failing to build the housing Enfield needs.
Download the paper “Less than zero: The decline of Social Rent Housing in Enfield”
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