A COUNCILLOR has slammed the number of empty homes in Westmorland and Furness as ‘morally wrong’ in light of homelessness in the area.

Figures show that in Westmorland and Furness there are approximately 2358 properties that have been empty for six months or longer with there being over 900 vacant properties in Barrow and Furness alone, according to a report published by the council.

Councillor Eamonn Hennessy (Kendal Castle, Lib Dems), called the number of empty properties reported in the Westmorland and Furness draft rough sleeping strategy 2024-2029 ‘morally wrong’.

The assistant director of housing for Westmorland and Furness Council, Caroline Wagstaff, told the communities and environment scrutiny committee the housing team want to develop an empty homes strategy, but it will need approval from the cabinet first.

Cabinet member for climate and biodiversity, councillor Giles Archibald, said he was ‘delighted’ to hear of the work being done and labelled the number of empty homes in the area a ‘disgrace’.

According to the draft rough sleeping strategy report in South Lakeland there were 55 households in interim accommodation in the third quarter of 2023/24, in comparison to 12 in both Barrow and Eden.

The report states: “Maintaining tenancies and accessing settled accommodation in Westmorland and Furness has become increasingly difficult due to the current economic and housing climate. Pressures on household finances are increasing due to the lasting impact of welfare reform, a sustained period of austerity and a reduced housing supply.

“There are not enough homes available to buy or rent for people on moderate/low incomes. The shortage of socially rented and supported accommodation has increased the reliance on private rented dwellings.

“The private rented sector is becoming harder to access due to increased rents, landlords leaving the sector and other pressures such as the demand for supported housing via the exempt housing benefit regulations and government resettlement programmes.”

The report states there are six rough sleepers in Westmorland and Furness, with four in the South Lakeland area. These figures only include those sleeping rough on a single night between October 1 and November 30 and do not include those in hostels or sofa surfing.

Cabinet member for housing and homelessness, councillor Judith Derbyshire, said: “Having a stable, safe and secure home is an essential to enable people to live healthy, happy and fully independent lives in their communities. We recognise the negative impacts homelessness has on the health and wellbeing of those affected.

“Homelessness is a complex issue, we’re faced with an unprecedented combination of economic, social and global pressures on the housing system. We have a unique opportunity to build on the strengths and successes experienced in each of the former districts and we’re committed to sharing the best practice to find flexible solutions across our new area.”

Cllr Derbyshire also told the committee that Streetlink, a service that connects rough sleepers to local authorities has been ‘rural-proofed’ so people can use ‘What3words’ to provide the location of people sleeping rough to local authorities.