Number of children homeless in England the highest since records began

Number of children homeless in England the highest since records began

Shelter urges government to unfreeze local housing allowance in Autumn Budget as homelessness hit shocking new heights

New government statutory homelessness figures, released today, reveal 172,420 children are now homeless in temporary accommodation in England. This is an 8% increase in a year and the highest number since records began 21 years ago.

The new data for April to June 2025 exposes the devastating scale of the housing emergency across the country:

The number of children homeless in temporary accommodation is now larger than the entire population of Oxford.

Overall, there are now 132,410 households homeless in temporary accommodation across the country - up 8% in a year.

A third of households (32%), 42,740, are accommodated in temporary accommodation outside of their home area – up 10% in one year.

London is the worst affected area in the country. 97,140 children in the city are homeless in temporary accommodation and nearly half (46%) of all households (34,280) are accommodated out of area.

Ahead of the Autumn Budget on November 26th, Shelter is calling on the government to urgently unfreeze local housing allowance to help families out of temporary accommodation and prevent those pushed to the brink by rocketing private rents from becoming homeless. But in the long term, the only way to end homelessness for good is for the government to ramp up delivery of social rent homes through the new Social and Affordable Homes Programme.

Mairi MacRae, Director of Campaigns and Policy at Shelter, said: “It’s utterly shameful that the number of children homeless could now fill a city the size of Oxford. Thousands face a long grim winter stuck in temporary accommodation, including freezing bedsits and cramped B&Bs, because successive governments have passed the buck for a housing emergency of their making.

“Every day we hear from families who are terrified of spending months or even years in appalling conditions, watching their breath hang in the air as damp and mould climbs the walls. These conditions are only worsened by bitter isolation, as many are moved miles away from their extended families, schools, and communities.

“The government must unfreeze local housing allowance in the Autumn Budget so that it covers at least the bottom third of local rents, to prevent more families from being caught in the rising tide of homelessness. And in the long-term, the government must set an ambitious national target for the number of social rent homes it wants to see delivered – we need 90,000 a year for 10 years to end homelessness for good.”

ENDS.