Labour-run Enfield council left 100 families homeless after they refused to relocate

Councils have legal obligations to rehouse homeless people but can terminate these duties if a household refuses a ‘reasonable’ offer of housing, even if not local. Photograph: Mike Abrahams/Alamy

A Labour-run London council left more than 100 families homeless without support last year after they refused to be relocated outside the borough, the Observer can reveal.

Freedom of information data from about 80% of English councils shows that they ended their legal duties to 615 households who refused offers of housing outside the local authority area in 2024 – but this national total is heavily skewed.