We agree a loan to purchase properties on the open market

The properties will be used as temporary accommodation and refugee resettlement housing, and will be let at Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates, which are affordable under current benefit levels.

Councillor Paul Bell, Cabinet Member for Housing, said: ‘As the housing crisis continues and more and more people find themselves homeless, it’s vital that we look at different ways of increasing the supply of affordable homes – temporary and permanent. This loan is a part of our wider strategy to do just that.’

As well as being used for temporary accommodation, the new properties will also provide housing to refugee families resettling in the borough as part of our refugee resettlement programme. Earlier this year, we committed to welcoming a further 100 refugee families in addition to the 17 families previously resettled in Lewisham, and to become a borough of sanctuary.

Purchasing additional properties through this loan reflects two of our corporate priorities: tackling the housing crisis and being an open borough, which includes becoming a borough of sanctuary.