Just 4 per cent of people in London's richest borough contribute to scheme to relieve homeless crisis

Local labour leader says £603,009 raised so far is just a 'drop in the ocean'

Only 4 per cent the richest households in a London borough which has the country’s highest number of rough sleepers donated to a homeless fund to help relieve the crisis.

Almost a year ago, the Conservative council in Westminster asked households in the highest council tax band to consider paying an extra £833 to help the young, homeless and lonely.

But figures released this week revealed that just 644 properties or just over 4 per cent of about 15,800 band H homes valued at more than £320,000, had contributed.

Adam Hug, the leader of the council's Labour group, said the sum was a “drop in the ocean” compared with cuts to homelessness services in the area which has the lowest council tax rates in the country.

Since its launch on 7 March last year, the “community contribution scheme” has raised £603,009.

This will be spent on youth services, helping rough sleepers off the streets and supporting the isolated.

A Westminster City Council spokesman said a “significant number” of properties had overseas owners or were unoccupied.

“Those replying have been both enthusiastic and generous – in several cases offering donations up to £10,000,” he added.

Band H households received a letter with their council tax bill in March asking them to consider voluntarily paying double their normal council tax amount.

Those who did not initially contribute to the scheme were sent a follow-up letter in November.

Council leader Nickie Aiken said the contributions showed wealthy householders cared about their neighbourhoods.

“When we first floated the idea of a community contribution scheme, cynics said it would flop, and that wealthy householders didn’t care what happened in their neighbourhoods,” she said. “The hundreds of thousands of pounds being allocated today shows they do care – and they are quite specifc about what they want this money to go towards.”

Mr Hug meanwhile, welcomed any new money but said contributions “are dwarfed by the scale of the challenge”, with millions cut from the borough’s rough sleeping contracts in recent years.

“We just need to be honest that it’s a drop in the ocean compared to the scale of the cuts Westminster has faced year on year with another £36 million in cuts due this year,” he added.

Government figures last month showed Westminster was the local authority with the largest number of rough sleepers in England during a snapshot carried out on a night last autumn.

The total of 306 had risen 41 per cent since the previous year.