I am requesting aggregated, non-personal information about households placed in temporary accommodation outside your administrative area ("out-of-area") and the cost to your council of those placements. Definitions (to avoid ambiguity) 1. "Temporary accommodation (TA)" means interim/temporary accommodation secured or provided in connection with homelessness duties/powers under Part VII Housing Act 1996 (e.g. s.188, s.190, s.193 and related provisions), including nightly-paid accommodation such as B&B/hotels and other TA forms. 2. "Out-of-area" means TA located outside your council's administrative area (including placements elsewhere in Kent/Medway and outside Kent/Medway). 3. "Household with children" means a household containing at least one dependent child aged under 18. Time period Financial years: 1 April 2023 - 31 March 2024, 1 April 2024 - 31 March 2025, 1 April 2025 - 31 Dec 2025 Information requested (please answer from existing reports/ledgers) Please provide the following single-year totals for FY 2023/24, 2024/25, 1 April 2025 - Dec 31 2025: 1. Households placed out-of-area in TA a) Total number of households your council accommodated in out-of-area TA at any point during the year; and b) Of (a), the number of households with children. 2. Section 208 notifications (totals only) a) Total number of Section 208 (out of district) notifications sent by your council during the year (relating to your out-of-area placements); and b) Total number of Section 208 notifications received from other authorities during the year (relating to households they placed into TA within your area, also name the council who received the notification from). 3. Cost to the council of out-of-area TA (totals only) a) Total gross expenditure by your council on out-of-area TA during the year; and b) If your accounts/reporting hold it without manual casework: total income/recoveries attributable to out-of-area TA during the year (however recorded in your systems), and the resulting net cost (gross minus income/recoveries). If (b) is not held in a way that can be attributed specifically to out-of-area TA, please state "not held". Format Please provide the figures in a reusable electronic format (CSV/Excel preferred). Aggregated totals are sufficient; I am not requesting any personal data. Cost limit / advice and assistance This request is intentionally limited to headline totals for the financial years mentioned and is directed at information that should be retrievable from existing management information and finance systems. If you nevertheless consider any part exceeds the FOIA appropriate limit, please provide the information that can be supplied within the limit and offer advice under s.16 FOIA on the narrowest refinement that would make the remainder answerable.
Please provide the following single-year totals for FY 2023/24, 2024/25, 1 April 2025 - Dec 31 2025:
1. Households placed out-of-area in TA
a) Total number of households your council accommodated in out-of-area TA at any point during the year; and
2023/24 - 116 households
2024/25 - 52 households
01/04/25 - 31/12/2025 - 37 households
b) Of (a), the number of households with children.
2023/24 - 38 households
2024/25 - 14 households
01/04/25 - 31/12/2025 - 5 households
2. Section 208 notifications (totals only)
a) Total number of Section 208 (out of district) notifications sent by your council during the year (relating to your out-of-area placements); and
Not recorded
b) Total number of Section 208 notifications received from other authorities during the year (relating to households they placed into TA within your area, also name the council who received the notification from).
2023/24 -
Sevenoaks - 3, Tonbridge & Malling - 30, Maidstone - 1, Rother - 3 (Total - 37)
2024/25 -
Tonbridge & Malling - 12, Lewes/Eastbourne - 1, Thanet - 1, Greenwhich - 1 (Total - 15)
01/04/25 - 31/12/2025 -
Tonbridge & Malling - 26, Lewes/Eastbourne - 1, Sevenoaks - 4, Cantebury - 1 (Total - 32)
3. Cost to the council of out-of-area TA (totals only)
Information not held (temporary accommodation cost is not broken down to location of placement).
a) Total gross expenditure by your council on out-of-area TA during the year; and
Information not held (temporary accommodation cost is not broken down to location of placement).
b) If your accounts/reporting hold it without manual casework: total income/recoveries attributable to out-of-area TA during the year (however recorded in your systems), and the resulting net cost (gross minus income/recoveries).
Information not held (temporary accommodation cost is not broken down to location of placement).
If (b) is not held in a way that can be attributed specifically to out-of-area TA, please state "not held".
