70,000 children living in temporary accommodation, says charity
On New Year's Day, almost 70,000 children in England will wake up in temporary accommodation, without the security of a home, according to the homelessness charity Shelter.
Every two minutes in Britain someone loses their home, and Shelter says it can take one small setback such as illness or job loss to push families into a spiral of debt and despair.
The charity predicts that as more families find their finances squeezed by high living costs and rising unemployment, many more will be pushed over the edge to homelessness in the first few months of 2012.
According to government figures highlighted by the charity, there are 69,846 children in England living in temporary accommodation such as hostels, bed and breakfasts and refuges. Many of them will be forced to move repeatedly with their families over the coming months and, in some cases, may have to wait years before they find a permanent place to live.
The figures reveal that 35,680 households have been accepted as homeless by local authorities since the beginning of 2011.
Campbell Robb, Shelter's chief executive, said: "The greatest tragedy is that year-to-date figures are 13% higher than they were at this time last year. The reality is this is a fate that could happen to anyone of us.
"And with rising unemployment, increases in fuel bills and a continued squeeze on living costs, the picture is unlikely to improve any time soon.
"We know only too well that being made homeless, or living each day under the constant threat of homelessness, is a horrific experience that can tear families apart. That's why we will be doing all we can to help those who are struggling."
A poll commissioned by Crisis this month revealed that one in four people in Britain were worried about losing their home. Campaigners fear that cuts to young people's housing benefit in January could force more to sleep on the streets.
In Manchester, the number of homeless people has dramatically increased in the last year, according to a small charity that helps rough sleepers.
Barnabus, a Christian charity based in north-west England, says it is helping 600 people a week, about a quarter of whom had recently lost their jobs and an increase of a third compared with 18 months ago.
