An investigation reveals that half of local authorities in England are being charged excessively by landlords and hotel owners for temporary housing, often paying double the local market rent. Councils are spending 60% more for accommodations like bed and breakfasts and hostels compared to similar-sized private market rentals, highlighting the severity of England’s hidden homelessness crisis. The situation is further illustrated by the experience of residents in cramped conditions, with one describing a Birmingham homeless hostel as feeling “very much like a prison.”
