Homelessness has increased, with the main cause being the end of a private tenancy.
The number of new households in England officially accepted as homeless between April 1 and June 30 was 13,850 – 5% higher than in the same quarter last year.
Of that number, 63% were placed in temporary accommodation.
The total number of households living in temporary accommodation on June 30 was 66,980 – 12% higher than on the same date last year.
The most frequent reason for being homeless was the ending of an assured shorthold tenancy with a private landlord.
In England, this was the cause of 30% of homeless cases, rising to 38% in London.
The end of a tenancy has been an increasingly frequent cause of homelessness, rising from 11% of all cases in 2009 to 29% last year.
The rise has been occurring against a background of a doubling in the size of the private rented sector over the last ten years.
A total of 6,980 homeless households between April 1 and June 30 were given local council or housing authority accommodation.
A total of 550 households accepted accommodation in the private rented sector, up from 450 in the same quarter last year.
The Department for Communities and Local Government’s full figures can be found here
Comments (3)
The Governments need to build social housing and stop playing around with market conditions. When will those in Government face up to the truth rather than trying to blame everyone else for THEIR FAILURES. 200,000 homes and 300,000 people needing them = misery for 100,000. Either increase supply or reduce demand and stop the nonsense badly drafted legislation encouraged by a housing charity that does not resolve the core problem – LACK OF SUPPLY AND OVER DEMAND.
Hardly surprising after a decade of increasing legislation, council registration and tax disincentives. The PRS is under serious threat and we’d better wake up: the last 5 years of intervention has happened under a Tory government. Imagine if we had a Labour government in Downing Street.
My thoughts entirely.
Instead of playing to the anti-landlord / anti-letting agent crowd, the government need to be using a lot more “carrot” in the PRS, than the current emphasis on one “stick” after another.