Shelter responds to latest homelessness figures

Shelter's response to MHCLG’s latest homelessness figures

• in the last five years, the number of homeless families living in temporary accommodation has increased by 48%

• losing a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness. 16,320 households became homeless after being evicted from a privately rented home in the last year, accounting for 28% of all homeless households in priority need

• in the last 12 months, nearly 58,000 families were accepted as homeless by their local councils. This equates to an increase of 8% over the last five years

“It’s no surprise that eviction from a privately rented home is the biggest cause of homelessness. Families up and down the country are battling to pay their rent or find somewhere they can afford. Rents eat up such a huge chunk of income that many families then struggle to provide essentials like putting food on the table, and paying their utility bills.

Polly Neate, Chief Executive of Shelter, said: “Today’s figures lay bare the true extent of our homelessness crisis, which is thrusting thousands of families into insecure temporary accommodation. This is fuelled by a crippling combination of increasing rents, brutal welfare changes and an underlying lack of affordable homes.

“To prevent thousands more families from sliding into homelessness, the government must get on with the job of building many more homes that are genuinely affordable for families to rent, and making lettings more stable and secure.”

Notes to editors

• anyone who is worried about losing their home can get free and independent, expert advice from Shelter at www.shelter.org.uk/advice or by calling the helpline on 0808 800 4444

• the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)'s statistics were released for the three months from October 2017 – December 2017. The last twelve months of data is from January 2017 to December 2017. We compared this to data from January 2012 – December 2012

• the number of families accepted as homeless by their local council is from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)'s Live homelessness table 780

• the number of households becoming homeless after an eviction from a privately rented home in the last year is the number of households who lost their last settled home due to the ending of an assured shorthold tenancy (AST). ASTs are the type of tenancy used in the private rented sector. This is from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)'s Live homelessness table 774_England

• the number of families in temporary accommodation is from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)'s Live table 775_England