Shelter is warning the severity of the housing emergency is getting worse this winter, as new data reveals that over half of callers to its emergency helpline are people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. More than a third of these are families with children.
The research lays bare the devastating impact the combination of the pandemic, the cost of living crisis and record high rents have had over the last number of years. Advisers on the charity’s free helpline, which is part funded by M&S Food, are raising the alarm about the increasing number of people approaching them who are at crisis point and running out of options.
Data from Shelter’s emergency helpline shows that in 2024 so far:
Over half of all callers (55%) are homeless or at risk of homelessness – up 10% on 2020 levels.
Of these, more than one in three (35%) are families with children – up 12%in the last four years.
The number of single mothers in need of housing support has more than doubled in this same time period – up from 5% in 2020 to 13%.
Almost half (49%) of calls are from people struggling with housing costs – up by 14% since the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis began.
Shelter’s emergency helpline provides expert advice, support and advocacy to people facing homelessness or bad housing. In the last year, the main reason people called the helpline was on issues relating to affording their housing costs (49%). That includes callers being forced into rent arrears after struggling with the cost of increasing household bills and rent, being threatened with eviction after being hit with huge rent hikes or facing homelessness because private rents are at record highs.
Andrea Deakin, Head of Telephone and Online Advice Services at Shelter said: “With rents rocketing across the country and homelessness at an all-time high, more people than ever are coming to our emergency helpline who are homeless or on the verge of losing the roof over their heads.
“Day in and day out, our dedicated team of advisers are hearing increasingly heartbreaking stories from desperate families in appalling living situations. From the family forced to fork out hundreds on getting their child to school after being uprooted to an emergency B&B miles from their community, to the young pregnant woman terrified of sleeping on the street after being made homeless.
“Our advisors are doing everything they can to help families impacted by the housing emergency this winter. By picking something up from M&S’s Food on the Move range, you will help families get the expert advice and support they need to find a safe place to call home.”
The funds raised help families like Hazell and her three children. The Manchester-based family were facing homelessness after they were threatened with eviction for challenging a rent rise. Shelter’s helpline advisers supported Hazell throughout the process and with their help, she was able to find out her rights and keep hold of her home.
Hazell said: “When I received the eviction notice, I remember feeling like everything was falling apart. We’ve lived here for 12 years and had so many issues – I’ve had electric shocks from the faulty wiring in the kitchen and I’ve broken my foot on the stairs, which led me to find hidden fire damage throughout the house. I raised it with the letting agent but was ignored. My rent was put up and when I asked for the repairs to be done first, I was told I was being evicted.
“I’ve called Shelter’s Helpline a number of times. The first time I spoke to an adviser, he was really helpful and told me what my rights were. Another time, I was struggling to reach out because I didn’t feel that my problems were enough, but the adviser was very reassuring and supportive and validated that there was an issue.
“I’d hit a wall with my landlord after trying to speak to him so many times and I was losing hope. Shelter encouraged me to try again and meet with my landlord. He came round and saw all the issues for himself. He agreed a new contract with me and to get the repairs done, and he’s kept his word – and there’s no more threat of losing our home.
“It’s draining to think of how many years it’s taken me to get to this point. My youngest son is autistic and I’ve tried to shield him from what’s been going on but he’s aware. His school have also noticed a change in his behaviour, he hasn’t had meltdowns there for a long time, and he’s now having quite a few. If he doesn’t know what’s happening it really throws him off.
“The helpline advisers gave me the confidence to keep going, helped me understand my rights and that I could get support with different things. I feel there’s a weight off my shoulders.”
One of the reasons Shelter can keep its emergency helpline open is through its longstanding partnership with M&S Food, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. A percentage of every sale from M&S’s festive Food on the Move range, including Christmas sandwiches, goes directly towards Shelter’s emergency helpline.
