National homelessness charity Crisis is urging party leaders in England to acknowledge the scale of the housing and homelessness crises after seeing an ‘unprecedented’ increase in demand for its services.
Across its nine frontline services, Crisis has seen a 25% increase in demand over the past year. While the specific context varies in each area, the number of people approaching its services in Merseyside has increased by 39%. The service in Birmingham has seen a 35% rise in demand, and Brent 44%. Crisis’ frontline teams are reporting hundreds more people needing urgent help [1].
The picture in Brent
The recent rise in demand across Crisis’ services has been most acute in Brent. In 2022, 642 people came to the Brent Skylight for support; in 2023, this had increased to 927 people – a 44% increase. The Brent service regularly opens with a queue of people outside the door. Nearly all are sleeping rough.
Recent local government statistics show that, between January and September 2022, 2,065 households approached the council for homelessness support. For the same period in 2023, this increased to 2,369. There’s also a changing picture of who needs support. Younger people are struggling to find somewhere affordable to rent in the private sector. At the other end of the scale, the number of older people needing support has increased, with the oldest being 81 years old.
The national picture
More than 250,000 households across Great Britain are now experiencing the worst forms of homelessness. Record numbers of households are trapped in expensive and often unsuitable temporary accommodation in England (more than 112,000 households). Rough sleeping is again on the rise in England – up 27% from last year, the sharpest increase since 2015. Just 9,561 social homes were built last year, while 22,023 were either sold or demolished in England.
Rising living costs, surging rents and a lack of affordable housing mean that thousands of people are struggling to find a safe and stable home across the country. Local services also indicate that people find it difficult to navigate tenancies and the welfare and benefits system. There are significant issues with overstretched and under-resourced services, such as for local councils, mental health and adult social care.
Parties have laid out some plans for housing and homelessness in their manifestos [2]. Crisis is calling on party leaders to commit to establishing an Office for Ending Homelessness at the heart of government; build 90,000 new social homes a year; and invest in support services for people who need additional help to keep their home.
Matt Downie, Crisis Chief Executive, said:
“Our services are seeing unprecedented numbers of people coming to them for help. Too many people are trapped in poor quality temporary accommodation, while too many are living on a knife edge wondering if they’ll be able to afford to keep a roof over their head. It’s appalling that anyone is forced to sleep rough, let alone people in their 60’s and 70’s who should be enjoying a secure retirement.
“The next Government – whatever its makeup – needs to acknowledge the scale of this crisis and quickly demonstrate how it will end homelessness. We need someone with power at the heart of Government to coordinate efforts across departments, and for ministers to get thousands more social homes built every single year.
“It won’t be easy, but with political will and determination we can ensure thousands of people have the stability of a safe home and, ultimately, build a future free from homelessness.”
