The number of homeless people in the Enfield borough is increasing, prompting the council to search for more places for people to live.

In April this year, the amount of homeless people in the borough stood at 1,435 compared with 1,233 at the same time last year, a rise of more than 200.

A council spokesman said the rise means more people are having to be housed in expensive temporary accommodation.

He said: "Demand is fairly steady for homeless accommodation. The real problem is a lack of permanent accommodation."

The homeless figure for Enfield is much higher than the average of 1,033 for inner London boroughs, and almost double the average of 759 for outer London.

In a bid to combat the problem, the council is looking at increasing the amount of partnerships with private landlords. This will reduce the need for costly bed and breakfasts for the homeless.

Another solution would be to utilise the large quantity of empty properties in the area.

One such example of this is evident in a planning application which has been submitted to the council from an owner of an office building in Winchmore Hill.

It is proposed that the two-storey building in Station Road will be changed into an "emergency occupation for the homeless".

In April this year, there were 936 people housed by the council in private sector leasing, 174 in other forms of private accommodation and another 117 in hostels or women's refuges.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000.Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.