Ealing Council to Continue Using Hotel for Temporary Housing
Extends lease on former wedding venue in Ruislip
The Barn Hotel used to offer fine dining. Picture: Ealing Council
August 20, 2025
Ealing Council has confirmed it will continue leasing the Barn Hotel in Ruislip for another year to provide emergency accommodation for families facing homelessness. The site, located in neighbouring Hillingdon borough, currently houses more than 70 households and was first repurposed in March 2024 following a surge in demand for temporary housing.
Originally a fine-dining restaurant and wedding venue, the Barn closed in October 2023 due to financial pressures linked to the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit. It has since been adapted to offer more stable living conditions than commercial hotels, with ensuite bedrooms, communal kitchens and dining areas, laundry facilities, gardens with play equipment, and a dedicated games room for children.
Site manager Catherine Virdee, who oversaw the transition, described the Barn as “a stepping stone to a better life,” adding, “It’s a safe, secure platform for [residents] to rebuild their lives and get themselves into a longer-term home.”
The initiative forms part of the council’s wider response to a growing housing crisis. Since late 2022, rising living costs have led to a sharp increase in families seeking emergency support. Council data shows more than 7,000 households are currently on the waiting list for social housing, while around 2,500 are being supported in temporary accommodation. At its peak in May 2024, over 700 families were placed in commercial hotels and B&Bs.
One resident, Jacquelina, who moved to the Barn with her child after eviction from a rented home in Acton, said the change had made a significant difference. “It was hard in the previous hotel,” she said. “There was nowhere for children to play… This place is like heaven.”
Councillor Louise Brett, deputy leader and cabinet member for safe and genuinely affordable homes, said the council’s intervention was both a legal obligation and a moral responsibility. “Many ordinary, hardworking families have found themselves priced out of their own neighbourhoods,” she said. “Offering these families somewhere safe to stay with suitable facilities, in their greatest moment of need, is not just our legal duty—it is our moral responsibility.”
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