City of London Police suspect hundreds of affordable housing homes in Barking and Dagenham have been fraudulently allocated over four years after claims cash bribes were accepted
Two people have been arrested over claims cash bribes were accepted to help people jump long affordable housing queues.
City of London Police suspect some housing officers fraudulently allocated hundreds of homes in the London borough of Barking and Dagenham over four years. It is claimed social media was used to lure prospective tenants. The council’s counter-corruption team have been assisting the investigation, which follows months of intelligence gathering. City of London Police said would-be tenants “paid fraudsters ‘finders fees’ and inflated rents”.
The force said: “Prospective tenants answered social media adverts and were provided contacts as to how they could obtain affordable housing within the local Barking and Dagenham areas.” Police executed five warrants in Dagenham and Essex on Thursday.
READ MORE: Warnings renters rights reforms risks ‘tidal wave’ of illegal evictionsREAD MORE: Dad shares horror at illegal eviction and landlord who kept removing doors
The Labour-controlled council’s leader Dominic Twomey said: “Every day, our fraud team is looking into anything from corruption concerns to illegal subletting. Their job is to make sure public money is being spent in the way it should be, so I’m really pleased their proactive work has helped lead to today’s arrests.”
Waiting lists for affordable housing have been increasing over decades due to a shortage. Government figures show there were 1,330,611 households waiting for social housing in 2023-24 – up six per cent on the year before.
A study by the National Housing Federation found Barking and Dagenham is one of 50 councils with the longest waiting times – where at current rates, it would take over 15 years for a family joining the back of the queue to be allocated a three-bed home. Council properties are designed to support lower-income households and priority groups, such as people with disabilities.
Housing campaigner Kwajo Tweneboa said: “I’ve had people far beyond Barking and Dagenham reach out to me about the exact same issue of corruption, some even saying it’s been going on for decades. Let’s be clear, exploiting people who are already suffering, just so individuals in the public sector can line their own pockets, is disgraceful. It has to be exposed and rooted out.”
Dominic Twomey added: “Now we wait to see what happens as the investigation unfolds, but I would encourage anyone who feels they have information that could help – no matter how small or irrelevant it may seem – to come forward. Huge thanks go to our colleagues at City of London Police for the work they’ve done so far working in collaboration with the council and BD Reside.”
Police, who are looking into the allocation of properties between November 2020 and December 2024, have appealed for potential victims to come forward.