Greenwich has the fifth highest social housing waiting list across all London boroughs with 22,405 households on the housing register. The borough has the third waiting list in East London behind Newham and Tower Hamlets with 35,625 and 23,609 households on their respective housing registers.
However, more recent data from the borough suggests this could have increased to more than 28,000. Due to a lack of data from the council, we are unable to assess waiting times for social housing by property size in Greenwich.
According to the latest data on dwelling stock, Greenwich has the seventh highest total social housing stock in London, inclusive of council housing and private registered providers, with 36,136 social homes. Since 2010, the borough’s social housing stock has increased by 1,537 homes.
Greenwich’s housing allocations policy consists of four bandings reflecting priorities of reasonable preference. Band A households reflect urgent needs from demolition or essential works in existing social homes, under-occupation or succession to smaller properties, and tenants requiring adapted properties following hospital treatment. Band B1 is for households with urgent medical and welfare needs, living in overcrowded accommodation, council service staff relocation, and households owed a prevention, relief or main statutory homelessness duty. Band B2 is specifically for households owed homelessness duty who do not meet the council’s five-year borough residency qualification, or are in severe hardship due to the cost of the Government’s Total Benefit Cap.
Sources:
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Local Authority Housing Statistics data returns for 2022 to 2023
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Live tables on rents, lettings and tenancies; numbers of households on local authorities’ housing waiting lists, by district, England, from 1987
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Live tables on dwelling stock (including vacants); Dwelling stock by local authority and region, England, 2009-2023
- Office for National Statistics, Mid-Year Population Estimates, England and Wales, June 2023
- Greater London Authority, Land Area and Population Density, Ward and Borough data for 2023
- Sub-regions as defined by The London Plan
*A note on data sources. In order to provide comparisons of different local authorities total waiting lists, due to some boroughs not providing up to date information on the number of people on their social housing register we have used the most recent data (2022-23) published by MHCLG. Where boroughs provided us with more recent data, we have noted this.