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Number of households living in temporary accommodation rises again
The number of families living in temporary accommodation in England has risen again for the seventh year running, the latest government figures reveal.
There were 78,930 households living in temporary accommodation between October and December 2017, a 4% rise on the same period in 2016. Out of these households 60,520 had children. There were 16% of households who spent longer than six months in temporary accommodation. It is illegal to keep families in temporary accommodation with shared facilities for longer than six weeks.
The number of households has been rapidly increasing since 2011, when there were 48,920 households in temporary accommodation.
Jon Sparkes, chief executive at Crisis, said: “It’s unacceptable that nearly 79,000 households across England are finding themselves homeless and with no choice but to live in temporary accommodation such as B&Bs and hostels.
“This can’t go on. Temporary accommodation can be an important short-term measure, but when so many people are finding themselves stuck there it’s clear that the government must invest more in schemes to prevent homelessness in the first place – and ultimately to end it once and for all.“
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Faye Greaves, Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) policy and practice officer, said: “The number of households in temporary accommodation has soared by a staggering 64% since the low of December 2010 – this is frankly unacceptable. It’s encouraging to see a 27% drop in the number of families with children being housed in bed and breakfast accommodation, but there are still too many families trapped in this kind of accommodation, which is often very poor quality and highly unsuitable."
To coincide with the new figures the government has announced £215m of homelessness funding from 2019 to help councils prevent households becoming homeless.
Under the Homelessness Reduction Act, which comes into force next month, councils will be expected to provide information and advice on preventing homelessness to all at risk and to work with those who are already homeless for 56 days to help them find accommodation.
Heather Wheeler, homelessness minister, said: “This government is determined to help the most vulnerable in our society and to break the homelessness cycle once and for all. That why we’re investing over £1.2bn in tackling the issue and bringing in the most ambitious legislation in decades that will mean people get the support they need earlier.
“This latest funding gives councils the freedom to invest in homelessness services that work in their area, including support to prevent someone becoming homeless in the first place.”
