More than 200 households facing homelessness have been offered accommodation outside Waltham Forest since May, according to new council figures.
Between May and September 2026, Waltham Forest Council offered 212 at-risk households – adults living alone as well as families – housing beyond the borough because of a shortage of homes locally. Just 38 were given the chance to stay in Waltham Forest, and of those, only two declined.
Behind each of those numbers is a household deciding whether to leave the place they know. Most of the homes offered were classed as 'zone B', an area stretching across Greater London and the Home Counties. Nineteen single people accepted a move, while ten refused. Most of the 154 family households took up their offers, with 34 declining.
A further 29 families were offered 'zone C' housing, described as "everywhere else". Fourteen accepted and 15 refused.
A council report from April showed that 47% of these residents were living outside Waltham Forest, down from a peak of 65% in October 2024.
'Severe pressures'
Councillor Eva Tabbasam, cabinet member for housing, put the figures down to "severe pressures" in the borough's housing market.
"The administration is committed to reducing the need for homeless households, particularly families with children, to be placed outside the borough," she said. "However, severe pressures within the local housing market continue to limit the availability of suitable and affordable accommodation in Waltham Forest. Less than 1% of private rented homes advertised locally are generally affordable to households who are reliant on benefits or working fewer than 16 hours per week. As a result, the council must often secure accommodation beyond borough boundaries to meet its statutory homelessness duties."
At a full council meeting last week, Labour councillor Andrew Dixon pointed out that the Greens had made a manifesto commitment to house residents in the borough "wherever possible". He asked whether the council accepted that most residents who declined zone C housing did so because of its distance from the capital.
Cllr Tabbasam replied: "We still, in principle, rely on our manifesto commitment to reduce placements outside the borough. Ourselves, along with the five Green administrations in London, wrote to the prime minister to think about increasing the local housing allowance so that we can be able to afford the private market rent for family-sized homes in the borough."
She said market rent was "simply unaffordable for us".
In September, the housing member said that "too many residents are still living in temporary accommodation, too many tenants are dissatisfied with aspects of our landlord service," and that there were "still far too many homes that do not meet the standards our residents deserve".
