Local authorities in England report the numbers of households on their housing waiting list as at 1 April in their annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix returns. Information on local authority housing waiting lists is collected in respect of households rather than individuals. The number of households on the local authority housing waiting lists in all local authorities including Eastbourne and East Sussex is given in the following table:
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 South East 111,425 115,901 129,924 129,234 146,880 168,725 181,196 195,700 208,419 203,161 Bracknell Forest UA 1,308 1,302 1,331 1,413 1,604 2,812 3,019 4,076 4,067 4,122 Brighton and Hove UA 3,610 3,168 3,304 3,274 4,307 7,500 8,056 8,056 10,667 9,046 Isle of Wight UA 1,122 1,475 1,451 1,609 2,403 2,865 3,967 3,508 4,955 4,388 Medway UA 3,708 4.570 7,624 3,462 7,452 8,039 6,544 11,870 8,338 7,885 Milton Keynes UA 2,835 1,733 3,173 2,482 3,490 2,951 4,180 3,534 3,973 0 Portsmouth UA 4,759 4,389 4,838 4,810 5,525 8,960 7,965 6,661 6,751 4,562 Reading UA 3,343 3,827 4,348 3,160 3,231 3,428 4,330 5,162 5,242 4,504 Slough UA 1,739 1,931 2,225 2,097 1,945 2,437 3,190 3,759 3,909 3.780 Southampton UA 3,699 4,522 5,148 5,811 6,697 8,128 9,225 11,126 10,117 11,662 West Berkshire UA 887 781 1,014 1,008 1,640 1,820 2,242 2,785 2,893 4,259 Windsor and Maidenhead UA 2,419 2,363 2,375 2,301 2,357 2,418 2,353 1,690 1,674 1,922 Wokingham UA 1,359 1,497 1,851 2,564 2,372 2,457 2,116 2,294 2,699 3,036 Buckinghamshire 3,568 3,523 3,751 4,153 4,783 5,494 5,774 7,299 8,084 7,830 Aylesbury Vale 841 785 842 965 1,165 1,394 1,804 2,191 2,545 2,899 Chiltern 667 631 698 763 1,034 1,182 967 1,125 1,207 1,130 South Bucks 1,064 1,030 1,115 1,102 1,120 1,161 917 1,641 1,787 1,701 Wycombe 996 1,077 1,096 1,323 1,464 1,757 2,086 2,342 2,545 2,100 East Sussex 6,096 6,777 7,711 7,100 9,044 10,026 10,497 10,969 12,416 11,068 Eastbourne 1,753 2,184 2,596 2,041 2,806 3,000 3,354 4.481 5,225 3,404 Hastings 1,490 1,763 1,921 1,734 1,866 1,482 1,575 1,296 2,175 1,730 Lewes 818 818 872 809 927 1,203 1,312 1,485 2,041 2,207 Rother 1,176 1,138 1,383 1,539 1,825 2,387 2,037 1,398 1,362 1,542 Wealden 859 874 939 977 1,620 1,954 2,219 2.309 1,613 2.1B5 Hampshire 19,127 22,070 22,634 24,071 24,558 28,635 30,357 32,361 39,846 37,905 Basingstoke and Deane 4,245 4,046 4,652 4,281 4,497 4,761 4,937 5,083 5,543 5,633 East Hampshire 1,828 2,403 1,789 1,890 2,238 2,115 2,229 2.890 2,763 2,153 Eastleigh 1,200 1,361 1,481 1,623 3,424 4,446 4,515 5,014 5,528 5,604 Fareham 929 1,184 1,152 1,146 1,625 2,353 735 1,448 1,158 1,717 Gosport 1,167 1,130 1,204 1,375 1,412 1,668 1,833 2,013 2,597 3,076 Hart 588 645 816 923 970 1,074 1,163 1,344 1,267 1,882 Havant 2,714 3,264 3,735 3,138 2,349 2,480 2,256 2,202 4,198 4,232 New Forest 1,383 1,672 1,615 2,686 2.428 3,339 3,891 4,241 4,969 5,228 Rushmoor 2,221 3,616 3,514 4,101 2,189 3,264 4,151 3,634 5,693 3,102 Test Valley 1,723 1,611 1,440 1,645 2,189 2,092 2,698 2,885 3,925 3,048 Winchester 1,129 1,138 1,236 1,263 1,237 1,043 1,949 1,607 2,205 2,230 Kent 19,738 20,385 21,042 23,257 24,875 26,502 29,833 30,706 28,543 30,523 Ashford 2,201 2,151 1,691 1,438 2,077 2,665 2,482 1,174 1,508 1,762 Canterbury 1,920 2,164 2,185 2,738 2,484 2,814 3,330 3,039 3,398 3,758 Dartford 1,575 1,557 1,794 2,042 1,997 2,582 2,652 3,728 3,502 3,225 Dover 2,231 2,186 1,998 1,895 1,808 1,850 2,229 2,534 2,869 3,033 Gravesham 1,847 906 1,173 1,291 1,439 2,085 1,977 2,141 1,479 1,610 Maidstone 959 926 1,756 1,512 2,173 1,254 2,562 1,764 2,079 2,290 Sevenoaks 1,444 1,377 1,534 1.475 1,613 1,736 2,160 2,625 1,132 916 Shepway 2,595 2,759 2,144 3,027 2,539 1,886 2,311 2,652 2,213 2,118 Swale 2,106 2,461 2,215 2,070 2,545 3,328 3,805 4,311 3,352 4,432 Thanet 1,528 1,997 2,356 3,444 3,659 3,242 3,419 3,394 3,757 3,255 Tonbridge and Malling 658 920 1,168 1,330 1,460 1,913 1,727 1,897 1,858 2,350 Tunbridge Wells 674 981 1,028 995 1,081 1,147 1,179 1,447 1,396 1,774 Oxfordshire 10,381 10,520 11,824 12,539 14,256 14,821 14,163 14,550 14,433 13,926 Cherwell 2,422 2,520 2,676 2,560 3,023 2,450 3,767 3,436 3,415 3,072 Oxford 3,099 3.121 3,378 3,217 3,572 3,991 3,525 3,816 3.965 3,313 South Oxfordshire 1,488 1,836 2,244 2,354 2,270 2,169 2,043 2,253 1,719 1,770 Vale of White Horse 1,919 1,802 2,292 2,698 3,313 3,717 1,981 2,817 3,185 3,640 West Oxfordshire 1,453 1,241 1,234 1,710 2,078 2,494 2,847 2,228 2,149 2,131 Surrey 13,774 12,775 13,635 13,797 15,577 16,867 19,080 19,591 23,337 25,517 Elmbridge 1,976 1,317 1,839 1,704 1,901 1,894 2,054 2.206 2,242 2,086 Epsom and Ewell 537 526 427 462 525 659 382 677 962 1,165 Guildford 1,603 1,802 1,806 1,698 1,902 2,100 2,247 2,455 2,802 2,898 Mole Valley 1,177 1,080 1,211 1,372 1,620 1,357 1,318 1,805 1,933 2,373 Reigate and Banstead 1,155 1,164 1,136 1,062 1,173 1,391 1,751 2,073 2,563 2,540 Runnymede 694 725 427 383 945 1,582 1,715 851 1,493 1,984 Spelthorne 2,284 2,538 2,571 2,681 2,767 2,865 3,314 2,983 3,552 4,494 Surrey Heath 436 525 529 528 536 681 1,174 1,512 1,583 1,757 Tandridge 1,077 806 816 825 836 1,122 1,272 1,107 1,220 1,350 Waverley 1,288 1,066 1,201 1,269 1,389 1,569 1,680 1,719 1,743 2,267 Woking 1,547 1,226 1,672 1,813 1,983 1,647 2,173 2,203 3,244 2,603 West Sussex 7,953 8,293 10,645 10,326 10,764 12,565 14,305 15,703 16,475 17,226 Adur 1,162 853 1,060 873 1,262 1,551 1,888 1,711 1,520 1,548 Arun 689 834 852 933 905 1,385 2,309 2,389 3,882 3,318 Chichester 2,148 2,106 2,187 2,220 2,167 2,280 2,126 2,762 2,678 3,779 Crawley 465 633 2,046 1,755 1,930 2,250 2,208 2,562 2,445 2,599 Horsham 710 908 1,154 1,262 1,450 1,424 1,437 1,504 1,413 1,204 Mid Sussex 1.418 1,494 1,407 1,468 1,476 2,027 2,121 2,113 2,176 2,313 Worthing 1,361 1.465 1,939 1,815 1,574 1,648 2,216 2,662 2,361 2,465 Note: As reported by local authorities. As at 1st April. Source: Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix (HSSA) return.
Further information on the number of households on the local authority housing waiting lists for England, can be found in the statistical release “Local Authority Housing Statistics England: 2007-08: Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix (HSSA) and Business Plan Statistical Appendix (BPSA)” This was published on 22 January 2009 on the Communities and Local Government website at:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/lahousing200708
Additionally information on the number of households on local authority housing waiting lists broken down by Government office region and for every local authority, including the percentage of households this represents, is published on the Communities and Local Government website in Table 600 at:
http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/table600.xls
Copies of the statistical release and live table have been deposited in the Library.
Not everyone on the waiting list is necessarily in urgent housing need. The waiting list includes those who consider social housing as their preferred or one of a number of housing options, and those who decide to get onto the waiting list ladder before they need or want to move house—particularly where the priority system is heavily based on waiting time. The size of the waiting list is not an indicator of absolute need, it is only useful as a broad indicator of housing demand in an area.