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Bridging hotels and homelessness for Afghan households research report

To monitor homelessness pressures caused by the closure of bridging hotels for Afghan nationals, in August 2023, an online survey was sent to 44 councils in England with bridging hotels in their area. A total of 22 responded – a response rate of 50 per cent.


Key findings

  • Respondents reported 1,009 Afghan nationals who had stayed in bridging hotels in their area at some point: 812 were still in bridging hotels at the time of completing the survey, and 197 were in bridging hotels that have since expired.
  • At the time of completing the survey, respondents reported that of the Afghan nationals who had stayed in a bridging hotel at some point, 225 had already presented as homeless to the council (22 per cent).
  • At the time of respondents completing the survey, 336 Afghan nationals still in bridging hotels had not yet secured further accommodation (41 per cent) This is in addition to the 225 who had already presented as homeless.
  • Respondents reported a range of measures they were taking to assist Afghan nationals who had not yet found follow-up accommodation, including helping them find options directly, working with partner organisations to find accommodation for them, delivering workshops and training to Afghan nationals, matching them to properties in their area supported by the Local Authority Housing Fund (LAHF), assisting them in being transferred to other areas with more options available, and providing them with further temporary accommodation.