Housing Needs Assessment 2006 - Westminster City Council

1. IntroductionThe table below shows the number of homeless acceptances per annum for the period 2002 to 2006.The table shows that between 2002 and 2005 the numbers remained largely the same before fallingnotably between 2005 and 2006. This was largely due to the remodelling of the service to focus onhomelessness prevention from October 2005.Table 1.4 Number of householdsaccepted as homeless 2002-2006YearNumber ofhouseholds2002 1,1542003 1,0742004 1,1172005 1,1142006 931Source: Westminster Borough Council HSSA returns1.5 Property prices and income levelsLand Registry data for the fourth quarter of 2005 demonstrates that house prices in the City ofWestminster have increased by 45.2% over the five year period from 2000: a lower rate thanobserved nationally and a slightly lower rate than observed regionally. The average house price at£590,661 is higher than the average for England and Wales, and also higher than the Londonaverage.Data from the 2005 Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings suggests that the median full-time wageof residents in the City is £30,101. Average prices are therefore more than nineteen times averageincomes. On the basis of this data alone it is clear that there is likely to be an issue of access toaffordable housing for many households.1.6 SummaryThe City of Westminster is located in the heart of London and spans a number of high profile areas.In 2006, the population was estimated to be around 214,727. As would be expected of a Londonborough, at £590,661, average house prices are significantly higher than those found nationally,though the rate of increase is lower (largely due to the high base price).Secondary data shows that the number of households on the Housing Register is high at 6,565(April 2005) as is the level of homelessness acceptances, although this is falling. Populationprojections indicate that the population of the City of Westminster is set to grow at a gradual rate inPAGE 21