Sortstay
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For council out-of-hours emergency placements

The booking platform for
out-of-hours emergency accommodation

SortStay gives councils a faster way to secure and manage urgent placements with live availability, lower nightly rates and a clear record of every booking.

Free for councils
25–55% lower nightly rates than walk-in booking
Less time spent chasing availability out of hours
A clearer record of every placement
How it works

Built for the reality of out-of-hours placements.

SortStay gives councils a structured way to secure urgent accommodation with lower nightly rates, live availability and a clear operational record from request to confirmed booking.

Placement workflow

Find, confirm and place in one workflow.

Housing teams can submit the placement need, review live availability and confirm urgent accommodation through one out-of-hours workflow, with the booking record created as the placement happens.

Submit the placement need in a structured format
View suitable options with live availability and less back-and-forth
Confirm the booking with a clear operational and commercial record
See the council view
01
Submit the placement requirement
Capture borough, household size, accessibility needs and urgency in one referral.
Structured
02
Review live availability
See suitable accommodation options with live availability and clearer booking visibility.
Live
03
Confirm the placement
Secure the booking with address, reference and a clear audit trail in one flow.
Confirmed
Commercial model

25–55% lower nightly rates than walk-in booking.

SortStay gives councils access to lower nightly rates through pre-agreed emergency accommodation inventory before an urgent placement lands. That means less exposure to walk-in pricing and a clearer commercial position when decisions have to be made quickly.

Pre-agreed inventory before urgent demand lands
Less exposure to walk-in pricing out of hours
Lower nightly rates visible before booking
See the platform workflow
Out-of-hours placement · Greater London ✓ Pre-agreed
Family booking example
Greater London · 2 adults, 1 child
Walk-in
£125
SortStay
£69
Illustrative nightly rate comparison
Adoption

Free for councils. Straightforward to adopt.

SortStay is free for councils to use. There is no subscription, no setup fee and no platform budget line, which makes the service easier to assess, easier to explain internally and easier to put into practice.

No platform cost for local authorities
Commission-funded to keep adoption simple for councils
A simpler route from first review to live operational use
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How it works
Council
Pays £0
Platform
SortStay
Provider
Pre-agreed
£0
Setup cost to council
5 days
To go live from signup
Platform

One platform for every part of an out-of-hours placement.

Housing teams need speed. Procurement teams need clarity. Service leads need visibility. SortStay brings each into one connected out-of-hours workflow.

Built for housing teams managing urgent placements.

See live availability, submit the placement need and confirm urgent accommodation through one workflow, with a clear record of what was requested, offered and booked.

Live availability: see suitable accommodation options for tonight, filtered by borough and household need
Structured referrals: capture urgency, household needs and booking notes in one format
Faster bookings: move from request to confirmed placement with less back-and-forth
Clear records: keep a full audit trail of requests, responses and confirmed bookings
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sortstay.co.uk/place
Borough
London Borough of Hackney
Adults
2
Children
1
Requirements
Ground floor · Cot available
3 options available
2m 14s
Best match: Family unit, NW1 · 2-bed · £69/night · Check-in from 15:00 · Ref: SS-2841

Commercially clearer. Easier to review.

SortStay gives procurement and finance teams a clear record of requests, nightly rates and confirmed bookings, making urgent placements easier to understand and review internally.

Agreed rates on file: pre-agreed commercial terms visible before the booking is confirmed
Clear booking records: requests, responses and confirmations captured in one place
Exportable oversight: placement history available for internal review and reporting
Full placement visibility: a clearer operational and commercial record from request to booking
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sortstay.co.uk/oversight
RefPropertyNightsRateStatus
SS-2841 Self-contained flat, NW13 £59 Confirmed
SS-2840 2-bed flat, E11 £63 Confirmed
SS-2838 Studio unit, NW15 £55 Ongoing
SS-2835 2-bed flat, E12 £63 Exported
Every placement has a clear commercial record. Requests, provider responses and nightly rates stay visible from first need to confirmed booking.

Visibility for service leads and decision-makers.

See placement activity, cost visibility and operational demand in one dashboard, without relying on disconnected updates or manual reporting.

Live placement view: see active bookings, recent demand and operational status at a glance
Commercial visibility: understand booked rates and placement volume in one place
Team demand: see where out-of-hours placement activity is concentrating
Reporting ready: a clearer source of truth for internal updates and review
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sortstay.co.uk/dashboard
Illustrative dashboard view
£12,480
Savings visible
143
Placements tracked
4m 22s
Confirmation time
31%
Rate difference
Placements by team
Housing Need
58
Homelessness
43
DV Support
32
Children's Svcs
10
Book a demo

See how SortStay would work for your borough.

SortStay gives councils a practical way to manage out-of-hours emergency placements with live availability and a clear record of every booking. With no cost to councils, it is straightforward to assess against your current process.