OFFICIAL HOMELESSNESS STATISTICS
England - Temporary Accommodation

• As at 31 March 2008, there were 78,000 homeless households in England placed in temporary accommodation by their local authority. 

• Although this number is well below the peak of 100,000 in 2005, it is still almost double the number in 1997.

• Three-quarters of the homeless households placed in temporary accommodation have dependent children and the remaining quarter do not. 

• In 2007, 15% of those leaving temporary accommodation had been there for more than two years (10,000 households).  A further 12% had been there between one and two years. 

• The Government has a target of eliminating the use of bed-and-breakfast accommodation for families with children.  There are now around 1,000 such households compared to 7,000 in 2002 - a substantial reduction.  The number of families without children placed in bed-and-breakfast accommodation has also decreased (from around 7,000 in 2002 to 3,000 at the start of 2008), but at a much slower rate.

• In its 2005 homelessness strategy Sustainable communities: settled homes; changing lives, the Government set a target for halving the number of households living in insecure temporary accommodation by 2010. 

'Homeless at home': These are households who have been accepted as being owed a main homelessness duty and for whom arrangements have been made for them to remain in their existing accommodation for the immediate future.

Page last modified on 02/07/2008 at 19:14