Census 2021 shows a rise in private renting in West Northamptonshire

More people are renting privately in West Northamptonshire than a decade ago, new figures show.

The latest figures from the 2021 census of England and Wales come as a housing campaign group calls on the Government to come good on its promise of a better deal for private tenants.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show 33,000 households were renting privately in West Northamptonshire when the census was carried out in March 2021 – 19.1 percent of the 172,639 households in the area.

At the time of the previous census in March 2011, 15.1 percent of households were private renters – meaning that the share has increased over the past decade.

Across England and Wales there are now five million private renters (20.3 percent of households), up from 3.9 million (16.7 percent) in 2011.

Dan Wilson Craw, deputy director of the housing campaign Generation Rent, said these tenants are “paying high rents to private landlords, face a much greater risk of living in a poor-quality home, and live with the threat of eviction at short notice”.

He added that despite the Government recognising the need for reforms in the sector – such as abolishing so-called 'no-fault' evictions – it is yet introduce legislation to properly support private tenants.

Shelter, a charity that tackles homelessness, said the "only lasting solution" to the housing crisis is to build more social homes.

The census figures also suggest it may be getting harder to join the housing ladder.

The number of households owning their home through a mortgage, loan or shared ownership has dropped across England and Wales, from 7.8 million (33.5 percent of households) in 2011 to 7.4 million (29.7 percent) last year.

The same was true of West Northamptonshire, where the share of households with mortgages or shared ownership fell from 39.8 percent in 2011 to 35.2 percent last year.

A spokesperson for the Department of Levelling up, Housing and Communities said: “Ensuring a fair deal for renters remains apriority for the Government, that’s why we will deliver on our commitment to abolish Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions and introduce a Renters Reform Bill in this Parliament."