Properties purchased for TA - England
Case reference FOI2026/02468
Received 13 October 2026
Published 29 October 2026
Request
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, please provide the following for the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2026:
1. The number of residential properties the council purchased for use as temporary accommodation. For this and each of the questions below, please break down the figures by whether the purchase was funded through the Local Authority Housing Fund or by the council directly.
2. Of these, the number that were occupied by tenants at the point the council agreed to buy them, or were sold with vacant possession after tenants were asked to leave.
3. The number of households known to the council to have been served notice to leave (under Section 21 or any other ground) so that a property could be sold to the council.
4. Whether the council requires sellers to confirm no tenants were evicted to achieve vacant possession. If so, please provide the policy or document that sets this out.
Please provide the figures for questions 1 to 3 in a spreadsheet format, such as .xlsx or .csv. If any part of this request would exceed the cost limit, please tell me which part and answer the remaining parts. If any part is refused, please specify the exemption relied upon and provide details of the internal review and appeal process.
Please also advise how I might rephrase the request to obtain the information. I would be grateful for a response within the statutory 20 working days. If you have any questions about this request, please let me know.
Response
Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, please provide the following for the period
1 April 2024 to 31 March 2026:
1. The number of residential properties the council purchased for use as temporary accommodation. For this and each of the questions below, please break down the figures by whether the purchase was funded through the Local Authority Housing Fund or by the council directly.
2. Of these, the number that were occupied by tenants at the point the council agreed to buy them, or were sold with vacant possession after tenants were asked to leave.
3. The number of households known to the council to have been served notice to leave (under Section 21 or any other ground) so that a property could be sold to the council.
4. Whether the council requires sellers to confirm no tenants were evicted to achieve vacant possession. If so, please provide the policy or document that sets this out.
Please provide the figures for questions 1 to 3 in a spreadsheet format, such as .xlsx or .csv.
If any part of this request would exceed the cost limit, please tell me which part and answer the remaining parts. If any part is refused, please specify the exemption relied upon and provide details of the internal review and appeal process. Please also advise how I might rephrase the request to obtain the information.
I would be grateful for a response within the statutory 20 working days. If you have any questions about this request, please let me know.
Answer: Please see attached spreadsheet.
Documents
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
You can browse our other responses or make a new FOI request.