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<h1><b>Homelessness in England at new 200k high amid cost of living
crisis, government figures show
</b></h1><font size=5><b>
<a href="https://tlio.org.uk/homelessness-in-england-at-new-high-amid-cost-of-living-crisis-government-figures-show/" eudora="autourl">
https://tlio.org.uk/homelessness-in-england-at-new-high-amid-cost-of-living-crisis-government-figures-show/<br>
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<a href="https://tlio.org.uk/homelessness-in-england-at-new-high-amid-cost-of-living-crisis-government-figures-show/">
27 July 2023</a> <a href="https://tlio.org.uk/author/tony/">Tony
Gosling</a>
<a href="https://tlio.org.uk/homelessness-in-england-at-new-high-amid-cost-of-living-crisis-government-figures-show/#respond">
Leave a comment</a> - <br><br>
<a href="https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/homelessness-figures-january-march-2023/">
The highest number of people on record applied for homelessness support
at the start of 2023 amid the housing and cost of living
crises.</a><br><br>
<img src="cid:7.0.1.0.1.20230727221922.07d0ae78@cultureshop.org.uk.0" width=603 height=344 alt="Emacs!">
<br>
<a href="https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/homelessness-figures-january-march-2023/" eudora="autourl">
https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/homelessness-figures-january-march-2023/<br>
<br>
</a>Early 2023 was the worst period for homelessness in England since
records began, according to the latest government figures, causing
charities to redouble their appeals for action to address the dual crises
of housing and the
<a href="https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/cost-of-living-help-households-winter/">
cost of living</a>.<br><br>
Almost 80,000 households in England contacted their local council between
January and March 2023 because they were homeless or at risk of
homelessness, the highest number since these records began in
2018.<br><br>
A further 105,000 households were living in temporary accommodation in
the period, also the highest on record since 1998, including more than
130,000 children.<br><br>
The time for empty words on building social homes and overdue promises on
ending no fault evictions has long passed, said Polly Neate, chief
executive of Shelter, which estimated nearly 25,000 people had been made
homelessin the last year because landlords had evicted them via so-called
Section 21 no-fault evictions.<br><br>
No-fault evictions are fuelling homelessness and throwing thousands of
families lives into turmoil, Neate added. We need decisive action, not
lip service, before this crisis gets even worse.<br><br>
Shelter called on the government to prioritise pushing the
<a href="https://www.bigissue.com/news/housing/what-is-the-renters-reform-bill-and-how-will-it-change-things-for-renters/">
Renters Reform Bill</a> through parliament after the summer break. Many
hope the much-discussed bill will give more protections to renters and
abolition Section 21 evictions.<br><br>
More than a third of households were homeless because their private
tenancy had ended, and a quarter said they no longer had a roof over
their head because friends or family couldnt accommodate them.<br><br>
Once again, we see the crippling cost that years of no investment in
housing benefit, and a shameful lack of social house building, is having
by trapping families in temporary accommodation, added Matt Downie, chief
executive of Crisis. Not only do people not have the stability and
security of a home, but theyre often left to cope in just one room, with
no facilities to cook meals or do washing.<br><br>
Official government figures are based on the number of people applying to
councils for help, but homelessness is notoriously difficult to quantify,
meaning many more people could be living without a home across the
country.<br><br>
A government spokesperson said: We are determined to prevent homelessness
before it occurs. Temporary accommodation ensures no family is without a
roof over their head and we have been clear that the use of B&Bs is
always a last resort.<br><br>
On Monday the government promised to make good on its manifesto pledge to
build 1 million new homes before the next election and Housing Secretary
Michael Gove announced a long-term plan for housing, relaxing planning
rules to allow more building in city centres.<br><br>
We need to keep going because we want more people to realise the dream of
owning their own home, said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.<br><br>
We wont do that by concreting over the countryside our plan is to build
the right homes where there is the most need and where there is local
support, in the heart of Britains great cities.<br><br>
Our reforms today will help make that a reality, by regenerating disused
brownfield land, streamlining the planning process and helping homeowners
to renovate and extend their houses outwards and upwards.<br><br>
But, given the scale of the problem apparent in the homelessness figures
released today, Crisis Downie accused ministers of being out of touch and
unable to grasp the severity of the situation.<br><br>
The Westminster government may have declared victory yesterday on a
pledge to build one million homes in this parliament, but these figures
highlight how out of touch they are. Until the Westminster government
grasps the severity of this situation, we will not see change, he
said.<br><br>
Families experiencing homelessness will continue to be commonplace and
more and more children will be forced to live in cramped, unsafe
temporary accommodation. Households across the country desperately need
more social homes as well as investment in housing benefit so that people
can afford even the cheapest of rents.<br><br>
The government spokesperson continued: Councils must ensure temporary
accommodation is suitable for families, who have a right to appeal if
they think it does not meet their households needs. Thats why we have
given 2 billion over three years to help local authorities tackle
homelessness and rough sleeping, targeted to areas where it is needed
most. In London, this includes over 350 million funding through the
homelessness prevention grant.<br><br>
The government is also improving availability of social housing. We are
committed to delivering 300,000 new homes per year and investing 11.5
billion to build the affordable, quality homes this country
needs.<br><br>
Lord Bird, founder of the Big Issue and crossbench peer, said: These new
figures on homelessness make it clear we are letting down the people who
need us most. As someone who has suffered homelessness I know the
long-term ill-effects and trauma that comes with it, the government
should be doing everything in its power to prevent families and
individuals at risk of losing their homes from becoming
homeless.<br><br>
Some immediate fixes the government could put in place, that we have been
consistently calling for, are to pass the renters reform bill and end
no-fault evictions, ensure universal credit is fit for purpose and
unfreeze local housing allowance rates. However, this is only the
beginning of what needs to be done, we need a focused and joined-up
approach with prevention at its heart to ensure we dont keep finding
ourselves back in this crisis.<br><br>
Too much money is spent on emergency and coping, this needs to change.
Our resources have to be focused on prevention and cure. Not only is this
cheaper for the government in the long run, but it is the only way we can
hope to put an end to the misery of poverty.<br><br>
I am now working on a new bill for the next parliament, a Ministry of
Poverty Bill, which is about putting poverty at the top of the agenda,
rather than have it ineptly dealt with in a piecemeal way. Having a
Ministry of Poverty would allow for a focused and comprehensive approach
to preventing and eradicating poverty.<br>
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