For Issue 83, produced jointly by Campbell Tickell and Devonshires, we turn our full attention to one of the most urgent and complex challenges facing the country: temporary accommodation (TA). The need for TA continues to rise, driven by a combination of entrenched housing shortages, the cost-of-living crisis, and growing pressures on local authority budgets. As a result, the system is straining under conditions that are often neither sustainable nor acceptable for the individuals and families who rely on it.

This special edition focuses on the work of the Temporary Accommodation Network (TAN) and on the scale of the TA crisis, alongside collaborative and forward-looking approaches that give reason for optimism.

Contributions from the New Economics Foundation and Just Life bring into sharp focus the human reality behind TA, particularly the profound and lasting psychological impact. Alongside this, the edition explores the systems and partnerships shaping the TA landscape. Project 123 demonstrates the potential of large-scale collaboration between London Councils and the G15 housing associations, while insights from Liverpool City Council and a range of case studies show how organisations across the sector are working creatively to unlock supply, improve quality and deliver better outcomes.

With all potential solutions, there is the question of long-term sustainability, both financial and strategic. Samantha Grix from Devonshires examines the urgent need to reform the subsidy model underpinning TA, while James McHugh from CT reflects on the national homelessness strategy and its implications for local authorities under sustained pressure.

Throughout this edition, a clear message emerges: while the challenges surrounding TA are significant and growing, they are not insurmountable. We hope the ideas, analysis and examples shared here help spark new thinking and strengthen the collective resolve to build a TA system that is fit for purpose, and ultimately, to reduce reliance on TA altogether.