Safety fears Families left in shoddy homes by UK councils

In his role as handyman at a guesthouse being used to house homeless people, Ricky Lee had keys to every bedroom.

- Jessica Murray Sammy Gecsoyler

In his role as handyman at a guesthouse being used to house homeless people, Ricky Lee had keys to every bedroom. He had previously been placed at Eastfield Guest House in Peterborough as a homeless person himself, and had moved into a caravan in the grounds, where he lived for free in return for carrying out maintenance jobs on site. Lee was later convicted of raping and sexually assaulting women staying at the guest house over a seven-month period. He raped one victim twice within hours of her being placed at the property by her local authority in June 2022.

"Lee exploited vulnerable women believing he could get away with it because they had dependency issues," said DCI Amerjit Singh from Cambridgeshire constabulary. "Most were too scared to report what had happened."

When he was sentenced to 25 years in prison in January, the judge sentencing Lee said it was "inconceivable management gave you the responsibility they did". The shocking case raises questions over the controls being placed on companies housing some of England's more than 100,000 households living in temporary accommodation, and the quality of the shelter they are placed in.

High street hotel chains, travel agencies and caravan parks are among those making huge sums housing people with nowhere else to go, as waiting lists for social housing soar and private rent becomes more unaffordable.