New analysis from Shelter has found a 59% increase in the number of
homeless children in the last five years. The charity
warns the impact of the housing crisis will be felt across a
generation as one in every 103 children in Britain is now homeless.
The leading homelessness charity estimates that 131,000
children will now wake up Christmas morning without a permanent
home. This is at least 3,000 more than last year. Of
these...Request free trial
New analysis from Shelter has found a 59% increase in
the number of homeless children in the last five
years.
The charity warns the impact of the housing crisis
will be felt across a generation as one in every 103 children in
Britain is now homeless.
The leading homelessness charity estimates that
131,000 children will now wake up Christmas morning without a
permanent home. This is at least 3,000 more than last
year.
Of these 9,500 will spend their Christmas in a hostel
or BnB, often with one family in a single room, sharing bathrooms
and kitchens with other residents.
|
"I didn’t feel safe at all because there
were other people living there...they would smoke a lot
and it wasn’t good. I felt pretty scared because you
never knew what would happen next
there.”
Angel, Hackney, 9
|
The charity is calling on the public to support its
urgent Christmas appeal - to give families the vital helpline
advice and services they need in order to keep their homes over
the festive period.
In the worst-affected local authority, Westminster,
one in 11 children in the borough is homeless. In Kensington and
Chelsea, which has the highest house prices in the country, one
in 12 children don’t have a home.
|
“I was so scared. I just felt like I had
failed my daughter because how could I have got us into a
situation where we haven’t got a roof over our
heads. My daughter who is eight started wetting the
bed because she was scared and stressed... All I need is
somewhere stable and affordable to live so I can raise my
girl and work.”
Limarra, Southwark, 25
|
There are 87,310 homeless children in London alone –
a 49% increase in five years. Beyond the capital, the housing
crisis is also growing. There are 11,314 homeless children in the
South East, more than double the number five years ago. The North
West has also seen a 175% rise.
In England, there are an average of five homeless
children for every school in the country. Shelter has found that
teachers who worked with homeless students reported that they saw
the situation causing severe emotional trauma leading to
emotional stress, anxiety and problematic
behaviours.
|
“As a parent I should be able to protect
my children and keep them safe... but I can't. I feel
hopeless. There is no joy or happiness in this house. All
is frustration, arguments and pain. We are just so tired.
For the last six-and-a-half years we have tried to move
to a suitable property, without any
success.”
Samira, Islington, 34
|
Teachers have reported homeless students facing a
range of practical challenges from keeping track of possessions
and uniform, to staying clean due to limited access to bathroom
or laundry facilities.
|
“It’s not a way of living for kids. They
can’t do their homework as there’s no internet unless
they go to the library. But you’re out of borough so they
don’t know where anything is. It’s horrible, an absolute
nightmare and not something you’d want your worst enemy
to go through.”
Michelle, Ealing, 41
|
New report The Housing Crisis
Generation examines the scale and impact of
homelessness on children in Britain today.
Greg Beales, director of campaigns at Shelter
said, “No child should be homeless. But for the
generation growing up in the housing crisis, this is the grim
reality for many.
“The number of children hidden away in hostels and
BnBs is enough to make anyone’s heart sink. These are not places
for children. We hear about cold, damp – even rats. Young
children are sharing beds with multiple family members, trying to
play in dirty public corridors, and having to leave their block
in the middle of the night to use the bathroom.
“Over the last five years, hundreds of thousands of
children have known what it’s like to be homeless. The
impact on these young people cannot be overstated. It
doesn’t have to be this way. If we act now, we can change
tomorrow to make sure every child has somewhere they can call
home.”
Angel, 9, Hackney was living in a BnB with
her mum and sister, they were moved into a hostel where they have
been for two years.
“For meals we had to have small amounts because there
wasn’t enough room to make what we would normally need. The
budget was too much for us … so my Mum couldn’t buy the things
that she needs to give us the amount of food we need
now.
“My little sister, she loves toys, so she wanted more
toys, but we didn’t have enough space and my Mum needed to spend
her money more carefully. So the only things we could spend it on
were food and water and all the other things we need to keep
ourselves alive.
"I didn’t feel safe at all because there were other
people living there. And, like here, they would smoke a lot and
it wasn’t good. I felt pretty scared because you never knew what
would happen next there. Also, for my little sister and my Mum I
felt pretty worried as well as you would never know if we’d run
out of money.
“There were mice and there were rats. You see how
they’re really sneaky, they come through our door and then
they’re just running around everywhere in the night so they can
find food where they can. Sometimes my Mum tries to trap them as
they can spread diseases, but they’re really clever so they know
where’s there’s traps or poisons. We found it tough with the rats
and mice.”
30 sec clips and three-minute B-roll
available of this interview.
To support Shelter’s urgent appeal please
visit www.shelter.org.uk or
text SHELTER to 70020 to donate £3.
ENDS
Notes to editors
· The
three tables below set out the figures and sources used in this
press release.
· The
number of homeless children in Britain is at its highest since Q1
2007 (133,768)
Table 1: Number of children that are homeless and living in
TA Q1 2018: National and English Regions results
|
|
No. of children that are homeless and living
B&B or hostels [1]
|
Total number of children that are homeless and
living in TA [2]
|
Population aged 0-17 [3]
|
Rate of children that are homeless and living in TA
(1 in x) [4]
|
Indicative number of homeless children per school
[5]
|
% change: total, year on year
|
% change: total, 5 years
|
|
North East
|
14
|
153
|
527,411
|
3447
|
0.1
|
5%
|
9%
|
|
North West
|
316
|
3,111
|
1,543,276
|
496
|
0.9
|
33%
|
175%
|
|
Yorks & Hum
|
37
|
822
|
1,158,481
|
1409
|
0.3
|
-4%
|
9%
|
|
West Midlands
|
1,303
|
5,668
|
1,282,904
|
226
|
2.2
|
30%
|
142%
|
|
East Midlands
|
515
|
1,854
|
988,743
|
533
|
0.8
|
27%
|
131%
|
|
East of Eng
|
1,088
|
8,437
|
1,324,441
|
157
|
3.0
|
9%
|
177%
|
|
London
|
4,420
|
87,310
|
2,001,359
|
23
|
27.7
|
-2%
|
49%
|
|
South East
|
744
|
11,314
|
1,943,865
|
172
|
2.9
|
6%
|
108%
|
|
South West
|
447
|
2,936
|
1,096,477
|
373
|
1.1
|
-1%
|
41%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
England
|
9,180
|
123,130
|
11,866,957
|
96
|
5.1
|
2%
|
62%
|
|
Scotland
|
110
|
6,615
|
1,030,055
|
156
|
N/A
|
9%
|
36%
|
|
Wales (Q218 data)
|
247
|
1,524
|
628,289
|
412
|
N/A
|
9%
|
-8%
|
|
Great Britain
|
9,537
|
131,269
|
13,525,301
|
103
|
N/A
|
3%
|
59%
|
|
Sources: [1] Official government homelessness
statistics, England, Scotland and Wales, Bed and
Breakfast plus hostels (not inc. womens refuges) Wales
estimated by multiplying number of families by average
number of children per family in Wales (1.752). Wales
figures are as at Q2 2018 as more recent data is
available than for England and Scotland. [2] as [1] but
total of all children in council arranged TA. [3] ONS
mid-year population estimates 2017, people aged 0-17. [4]
[2] as a rate of [3]. [5] Calculated using ONS schools
data for England, and based on a count of 24,316 schools
of all types (nursery, primary, secondary, state and
independent) in England. Rate is indicative only as some
homeless children are pre-nursery school age.
|
Table 2: Number of children who are homeless and
living in temporary accommodation, five-year trend.
|
Children in TA
|
England
|
Scotland
|
Wales (Q2)
|
Great Britain (with Wales as
Q2)
|
|
2018 Q1
|
123,130
|
6,615
|
1,524
|
131,269
|
|
2017 Q1
|
120,520
|
6,058
|
1,403
|
127,981
|
|
2016 Q1
|
111,060
|
5,223
|
1,393
|
117,676
|
|
2015 Q1
|
98,620
|
4,633
|
1,261
|
104,514
|
|
2014 Q1
|
83,370
|
4,153
|
1,498
|
89,021
|
|
2013 Q1
|
76,040
|
4,847
|
1,664
|
82,551
|
|
Official government homelessness statistics on
temporary accommodation, England, Scotland and Wales.
Wales estimated by multiplying number of families in TA
by average number of children per family in Wales
(1.752). Wales figures are as at Q2 2018 as more recent
data is available than for England and Scotland.
|
Table 3: Local Authorities in England with the highest
rates of children that are homeless: top 50. See table 1 for
notes and sources.
|
Local Authority
|
Region
|
Number of children homeless and living in temporary
accommodation
|
Total population of children (0-17)
|
Rate of homeless children (1 in x children)
|
National rank (out of 326 Local Authorities in
England)
|
|
Westminster
|
London
|
4,092
|
45,165
|
11.0
|
1
|
|
Haringey
|
London
|
5,255
|
60,625
|
11.5
|
2
|
|
Newham
|
London
|
7,326
|
85,755
|
11.7
|
3
|
|
Kensington & Chelsea
|
London
|
2,408
|
28,475
|
11.8
|
4
|
|
Enfield
|
London
|
5,565
|
84,211
|
15.1
|
5
|
|
Waltham Forest
|
London
|
4,291
|
66,801
|
15.6
|
6
|
|
Brent
|
London
|
4,888
|
77,563
|
15.9
|
7
|
|
Tower Hamlets
|
London
|
4,263
|
68,403
|
16.0
|
8
|
|
Barking & Dagenham
|
London
|
3,886
|
62,889
|
16.2
|
9
|
|
Lewisham
|
London
|
3,954
|
68,272
|
17.3
|
10
|
|
Hammersmith & Ful
|
London
|
2,017
|
35,928
|
17.8
|
11
|
|
Hackney
|
London
|
3,523
|
63,048
|
17.9
|
12
|
|
Lambeth
|
London
|
3,331
|
62,632
|
18.8
|
13
|
|
Redbridge
|
London
|
3,848
|
75,908
|
19.7
|
14
|
|
Luton
|
East of Eng
|
2,647
|
57,043
|
21.6
|
15
|
|
Ealing*
|
London
|
3,643
|
81,884
|
22.5
|
16
|
|
Wandsworth
|
London
|
2,736
|
63,019
|
23.0
|
17
|
|
Brighton and Hove
|
South East
|
1,999
|
50,981
|
25.5
|
18
|
|
Southwark*
|
London
|
2,298
|
64,386
|
28.0
|
19
|
|
Barnet
|
London
|
3,215
|
91,502
|
28.5
|
20
|
|
*Figures for Southwark and Ealing are
estimated using London's children in TA to households in
TA ratio, as no children in TA figure published for
Southwark or Ealing in Q1 2018
|
Table 3 (cont.): Local Authorities in England with the
highest rates of children that are homeless: top 50
|
Local Authority
|
Region
|
Total number of children homeless and living in
temporary accommodation
|
Total population of children (0-17)
|
Rate of homeless children (1 in x children)
|
National rank (out of 326 Local Authorities in
England)
|
|
Bexley
|
London
|
1,850
|
56,600
|
30.6
|
21
|
|
Croydon
|
London
|
3,068
|
94,775
|
30.9
|
22
|
|
Bromley
|
London
|
2,073
|
74,041
|
35.7
|
23
|
|
Kingston u Thames
|
London
|
1,050
|
38,609
|
36.8
|
24
|
|
Islington
|
London
|
981
|
41,416
|
42.2
|
25
|
|
Hounslow
|
London
|
1,497
|
63,928
|
42.7
|
26
|
|
Havering
|
London
|
1,251
|
56,671
|
45.3
|
27
|
|
Harrow
|
London
|
1,239
|
57,825
|
46.7
|
28
|
|
Broxbourne
|
East of Eng
|
453
|
21,800
|
48.1
|
29
|
|
Slough
|
South East
|
831
|
42,180
|
50.8
|
30
|
|
Harlow
|
East of Eng
|
376
|
20,950
|
55.7
|
31
|
|
Manchester
|
North West
|
2,051
|
121,182
|
59.1
|
32
|
|
Milton Keynes
|
South East
|
1,114
|
67,647
|
60.7
|
33
|
|
Sutton
|
London
|
751
|
47,469
|
63.2
|
34
|
|
Greenwich
|
London
|
1,036
|
68,262
|
65.9
|
35
|
|
Basildon
|
East of Eng
|
626
|
42,349
|
67.7
|
36
|
|
Watford
|
East of Eng
|
339
|
23,671
|
69.8
|
37
|
|
Birmingham
|
West Mids
|
4,028
|
288,082
|
71.5
|
38
|
|
Epsom and Ewell
|
South East
|
243
|
18,267
|
75.2
|
39
|
|
City of London
|
London
|
16
|
1,254
|
78.4
|
40
|
|
Castle Point
|
East of Eng
|
216
|
17,010
|
78.8
|
41
|
|
Hillingdon
|
London
|
914
|
72,746
|
79.6
|
42
|
|
Camden
|
London
|
580
|
49,173
|
84.8
|
43
|
|
Isle of Wight
|
South East
|
265
|
25,055
|
94.5
|
44
|
|
Chelmsford
|
East of Eng
|
384
|
37,482
|
97.6
|
45
|
|
Peterborough
|
East of Eng
|
503
|
50,009
|
99.4
|
46
|
|
Weymouth & Portland
|
South West
|
121
|
12,149
|
100.4
|
47
|
|
Medway
|
South East
|
624
|
63,943
|
102.5
|
48
|
|
Crawley
|
South East
|
255
|
26,962
|
105.7
|
49
|
|
Bristol, City of
|
South West
|
846
|
93,960
|
111.1
|
50
|
|
*Figures for Southwark and Ealing are
estimated using London's children in TA to households in
TA ratio, as no children in TA figure published for
Southwark or Ealing in Q1 2018
|
|
