Tower Hamlets Council buys four Canary Wharf office blocks to create 180 homes for homeless families

The purchase comes as demand for temporary accommodation continues to climb across the borough and the wider capital, with figures rising by 11 per cent a year. Tower Hamlets currently provides temporary housing for 3,100 households, 2,700 of them families.

Many of those families have been housed far from home. A 2025 investigation by MyLondon, Broken Homes, found the council had placed one household 34 miles away in Maidstone because East London housing had become too expensive. Tower Hamlets was one of only nine London boroughs to house homeless people within 50 miles of the area. By contrast, Ealing Council had moved one household 278 miles away to Newcastle.

Executive Mayor Lutfur Rahman said the conversion would help reduce the borough’s dependence on out-of-borough placements and expensive hotel stays.

“Every family deserves a safe and secure place to live close to their communities, schools and support networks,” he said. “By bringing these buildings into council use, we have an opportunity to create around 180 family-sized homes and provide better accommodation for local people who need it most.”

He added: “This investment will help us reduce our reliance on costly nightly paid accommodation and more importantly will help more families remain in Tower Hamlets and close to their support networks.”

Cllr Abu Talha Chowdhury, cabinet member for finance, assets and governance, said councils across London were under “unprecedented pressures” from rising homelessness and temporary accommodation costs.

“This proposal will allow us to make strategic use of existing buildings to provide good-quality homes for families, deliver better value for residents and strengthen the council’s long-term housing response,” he said.

He continued: “Keeping homeless families in Tower Hamlets means children are close to their schools and friends, and residents are close to their workplaces, healthcare and family networks. You can’t put a price on the wider social, educational and health benefits of keeping people in their communities.”