Royal Borough of Greenwich shortlisted for prestigious London Homelessness Award

The Royal Borough of Greenwich has been shortlisted for a London Homelessness Award and a potential share of £60,000 for a ground-breaking project that has reduced the numbers of people placed in hotel or bed and breakfast temporary accommodation by 84% in 18 months.   

The council’s project is one of six shortlisted projects that will now be visited by a member of the judging panel, and the final winner and runners up will share a prize fund of £60,000 when they're announced later this year. 

Councillor Pat Slattery, Cabinet Member for Housing Management, Neighbourhoods and Homelessness, said: "Being shortlisted for such a prestigious London-wide award is a true reflection of the efforts and determination of everyone who has worked on our project to drive down our use of hotels and B&Bs for temporary accommodation.   

“This is a great success story, but the work is only just beginning as we know how important it is to have a safe and secure home and improve the experience of some of the most vulnerable people in our borough.”  

The council was shortlisted for its work at using data and innovation to identify solutions to rapidly drive down the council's use of costly hotels and bed and breakfast (B&Bs) and target resources towards early interventions. The council has also been working closely with Creating Ground CIC, a not-for-profit organisation run by women from migrant backgrounds to improve the experience of families placed in temporary accommodation.   

This resulted in free wi-fi for families placed in temporary accommodation, a faster response to the processing of homelessness assessments, making direct offers for people spending the longest time in temporary accommodation, and using preventative incentives to help private sector tenants at risk of homelessness retain their tenancies or find ones.  

By March 2025, the programme had been able to achieve a staggering 84% reduction in hotel use between October 2023 and March 2025. And currently (11 July), there is just one family in hotel temporary accommodation, with the council continuing its work to end other forms of temporary accommodation that aren’t suitable for families, by April next year.   

The London Homelessness Awards are sponsored by the London Housing Foundation, London Housing Directors, Mayor of London, Crisis and Shelter. They recognise the significant achievements and excellent work of housing and homelessness organisations in London, including charities, third sector organisations and local government, working with people who are, or are at risk of becoming, homeless.

Find out more about the London Homelessness Awards at www.lhawards.org.uk