Hammersmith and Fulham

Hayden Glassey
Senior nvestigations and nformation Officer , H and F n Touch

Room 229
Hammersmith Town Hall
King Street
Hammersmith London
W6 9JU
Tel: 020 8753 2532
Email: Hayden.Glassey@lbhf.gov.uk
Web: www.lbhf.gov.uk






13 May 2013


Our reference: 542372
Mr. Andy Slaughter
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA

Dear Mr. Slaughter

Thank you for your request for information received on 14 March 2013.

Your request

How many families have been placed in hotels each year by the Council over the last 5
years, and which hotels have been used?

Can you please provide details of the cost per year of placing families in hotels for the last 5
years?

What hotels are the 5 most costly, and what is the weekly average spend on housing
families in these hotels?.

Our response

This request is being handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

The Council holds the information requested.

Over the last 2 years the use of Bed & Breakfast Hotels for the temporary accommodation
of homeless households has increased across London. Figures released by Communities
and Local Government show that the numbers in Bed & Breakfast at the end of 2012 were
up 35% in London compared to the year before. In Hammersmith & Fulham, numbers rose
in the first half of 2012/2013, but remained relatively stable up to the end of the year.

How many families have been placed in hotels each year by the Council over the last 5
years, and which hotels have been used?





The table below shows the total placements of families into Hotels throughout the course of
the relevant year rather than at any one time and therefore represents the total throughout
during that period.


2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Families Placed in BB during year
(based on Tenancy Start Date)
0 2 15 58 365

Can you please provide details of the cost per year of placing families in hotels for the last 5
years?

Expenditure in each year on placing families in Bed & Breakfast.

Year 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
2. Cost per year of placing families
In Hotels ()
0 693 9646 69,339 859,863

What hotels are the 5 most costly, and what is the weekly average spend on housing
families in these hotels?.

The highest expenditure was as follows:

1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th
Hotels

Annual Cost 234,142.00 60,434.00 59,718.00 54,078.00 48,911.00
Average weekly Costs 4,527 1,168 1,583 1,113 964

The names of the hotels have been withheld under Section 38 of the Act (Health and
Safety). This is because the Council uses these hotels as accommodation for vulnerable
people, such as those fleeing domestic violence. Disclosure of these addresses would put
the safety of those people at risk.

Section 38 is a qualified exemption, requiring the Council to consider the public interest in
disclosing the information. It is within the public interest to ensure that vulnerable people,
such as those fleeing abuse, cannot be traced and located by their abusers. Disclosing the
names of the hotels along with the frequency of their use would give a starting point for
anyone trying to locate an individual in temporary accommodation.

While it is clearly in the public interest for information about how public money is being used
to be disclosed, The Council is of the view that the public interest is largely met in the
disclosure of how much is being spent and the rates being paid, and it is less important to
identify the exact hotels used.

For the above reasons it has been concluded that it is within the public interest to maintain
the exemption withhold the names of the hotels.

If you are dissatisfied with the handling of this response, please contact the h&f InTouch
team, who will decide whether to refer the matter to the Council's Information Manager for
an internal review.

You can write to the h&f InTouch team at Room 229, Hammersmith Town Hall, King Street,
London W6 9JU, or email: handfintouch@lbhf.gov.uk. If you are registered for self-service,
via the Council's My Account portal, you can also do this online: Click here to complete the
form

You can also obtain further information from the nformation Commissioners Office at:
Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9
5AF
Tel: 08456 306060
Website: www.ico.gov.uk
Enquiries: www.ico.gov.uk/Global/online_enquiries.aspx

Yours sincerely



Hayden GIassey
Senior Investigations and Information Officer