‘One of the best places to live in Britain’ declares housing crisis as rents spiral out of control

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A town in Somerset has officially declared a housing crisis as renting costs surge across the UK.

Frome, a picturesque town near the Mendip Hills boasts winding streets full of independent shops, a bustling local market and lush countryside.

It has been named one of the ‘best places to live in Britain’ by The Times, but the historic, small-town charm comes at a steep price.

The average rent in Frome is now £1,499 a month, the kind of eye-watering prices you might expect in the capital not a parish with a population of less than 30,000 people.

Have you been affected by soaring rent prices? Email maryam.zakir-hussain@independent.co.uk to share your story

Frome is the third town in the country to announce a housing crisis after South Hams in Devon and Leicester.

“Rents have skyrocketed and that is pushing out local people who have been here all their lives,” councillor Polly Lamb told the BBC.

Ms Lamb said there are 600 families on the official council list who are waiting to be housed. Only 50 have found a place to live so far this year.

The problem is exacerbated by commercial developers building “large, expensive family homes” - but the area “urgently” needs social housing, she said.

Local artist Summer Auty told the BBC she “can’t afford anything in Frome” so she lives in her van.

The 24-year-old said she found single rooms available for £500 a month or over a thousand for “just a small flat”.

In July, property website Rightmove said the average rent being asked outside London has risen to £1,231 per month, while the asking rent for new tenants in London is at a record £2,567.

The figures, for the second quarter of this year, are the highest in Rightmove’s 12-year history of covering the issue.

It added that the average property available to rent is finding a tenant in 17 days, the quickest time period it has recorded since November 2022.