Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I am writing to request
information regarding the council’s use of short-term holiday
accommodation platforms—specifically Airbnb—to house individuals or
families experiencing homelessness.
For the purposes of this request, "emergency housing" or "temporary
accommodation" refers to any interim or nightly-paid accommodation
secured or arranged by the local authority to meet its statutory
homelessness duties.
Please provide the following information:
1. Usage and Expenditure
(a)Does the council book properties via Airbnb (either directly or via
an external agency/intermediary) to use as emergency or temporary
housing for unhoused individuals/families?
(b)What is the total financial expenditure by the council on booking
Airbnb properties for this purpose for each of the last five complete
financial years (2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25, and 2025/26),
broken down by year?
2. Council Policies and Disclosures
(a) What is the council’s official policy or procedure regarding
informing Airbnb property owners/hosts that the booking is being made
by the local authority to house a homeless client?
(b) What is the council’s official policy or contractual agreement
regarding paying out for any property damage, anti-social behavior, or
extra cleaning costs caused to an Airbnb property during a placement?
3. Compensation Payments
(a) How much money has the council paid out in compensation, damages,
extra cleaning fees, or dispute resolution payments directly to Airbnb
hosts or via the Airbnb platform for each of the last five complete
financial years (2021/22 to 2025/26), broken down by year?
If any portion of this request is unclear, or if you require further
context to locate these records, please contact me as soon as possible
as per your duty to provide advice and assistance under Section 16 of
the Act.
If either of 1b or 3a parts of this request cannot be responded to due
to AirBnb being too specific, please provide the figures for
"Nightly-Paid Private Landlord" costs or similar for emergency
housing/
If a specific part of this request cannot be fulfilled due to cost
limits or exemptions, please answer all other remaining components
that fall within the threshold.