Wandsworth Council has quietly signed off on a major housing policy shift: leasing a newly built hotel in Tooting and converting it into 186 self-contained units for use as temporary accommodation for homeless families.
The building, located near Tooting Broadway, was recently completed and was originally intended for use as a hotel. Instead, under a new lease deal backed by the council’s Labour administration, it will now be used exclusively to house households in temporary accommodation – many of them in crisis, some with children – as part of the borough’s strategy to tackle rising homelessness.
Councillors say the plan will save £1 million per year, offer higher-quality accommodation, and crucially keep vulnerable families within the borough, rather than placing them in unstable, costly, nightly-paid hotels elsewhere.
Despite the council’s enormous purchasing power and being tied into a six-year contract, the council’s own figures show it will be paying above market rates for the rooms: £60 per unit per night, or £1,800 a month. The council estimates [pdf] it will spend £26 million on the deal.
But behind the financial case, questions are being asked about whether this is really the best solution – and whether Wandsworth’s approach to housing policy is now being shaped less by consensus, and more by conviction.
A building with one purpose – changed to another
The hotel-turned-housing block has not yet opened to the public and was reportedly offered to the council by its developer. According to Housing Cabinet Member Cllr Aydin Dikerdem, it made perfect sense to take over the entire building, rather than risk a neighbouring borough snapping it up and using it for their own temporary accommodation placements.
“This is accommodation in-borough – which is really, really difficult to get hold of,” he told the Cabinet on Monday night. “It offers self-contained units, communal space, and saves around £1 million per year.”
He also insisted the building will be well-managed, directly overseen by the council, with services available on site – including homework clubs and family support.
Yet even within the typically united ranks of Cabinet, discomfort was clear.
“I’m nervous,” says local councillor
Cllr Kemi Akinola, who represents the ward where the hotel is located, made a point of speaking up. “I’m just getting in touch to say I’m nervous,” she said plainly. She pledged to work closely with Cllr Dikerdem to ensure the site integrates into the community and that residents are well-supported.
The issue is not the people involved – many of whom are families simply trying to survive after eviction, domestic violence, or poverty. Nor is it the council’s legal duty to provide housing. But it will be apparent to many that there is a big difference between repurposing existing housing for emergency use and redesigning a brand-new hotel to serve that purpose indefinitely.
The decision, while dressed in practicalities, reflects a deeper shift in the borough’s approach to housing under Labour. And more specifically, under Cllr Dikerdem.
Pragmatism or ideology?
Dikerdem, who took over the housing brief in 2022, has not hidden his ambition to overhaul what he calls “a broken housing system.” He has pushed the council to take developments in-house, reduced reliance on joint ventures, and been vocal about his rejection of private-sector solutions. On paper, the Tooting decision is consistent with that approach: public control, long-term leases, and in-borough placements.
But not everyone sees that as reassuring.
The building is a brand-new hotel that wasn’t designed for long-term family living. It’s not near parks. It’s not part of an estate with schools or support networks. It’s hard to square that with the idea of this being ‘dignified’ housing.”
Others questioned why such a prominent building – in a prime, well-connected part of Tooting – was being taken off the open market entirely, at a time when the borough says it is trying to revive its high streets, attract investment, and build mixed communities.
Even some within the Labour group are said to be uneasy with the “all eggs in one basket” nature of the scheme. But if so, they gave no outward sign. The Cabinet approved the plan without a vote, and with only minimal discussion.
What happens next?
The council has not published the full lease terms but confirmed that the units will be self-contained, with private kitchens and bathrooms – a significant step up from the bedsit-style placements some families currently face. The site is expected to open later this year, once internal modifications are complete.
The plan fits within a wider, urgent strategy to rein in the borough’s spiralling temporary accommodation costs, which have surged in the past 12 months as private rents rise and eviction rates increase. Just under 1,750 households are currently in nightly paid accommodation in Wandsworth – a number that continues to grow.
Dikerdem made clear that this is part of a broader programme of “delivery at speed” – his signature phrase – as the council tries to stabilise a housing system many consider to be in permanent crisis.
But with the decision now made, and the building soon to be filled, the bigger questions remain: Is this what housing policy should look like in 2025? Is this the best we can offer families in need? Or is it another example of Wandsworth trading flexibility for ideology – and mistaking efficiency for vision?
A further consultation is taking place at St Nicholas Church in Tooting at 7pm on the 25th September
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