Cuts 'fuel rise in homelessness'

The number of households living in temporary accommodation in England rose 12 per cent over the past year, with charities concerned about the long-term impact living in inappropriate conditions will have for many children, young people and families.

Latest data from the Department for Communities and Local Government shows 50,750 of the 66,980 total households in temporary accommodation had dependent children and/or a pregnant woman living in them on 30 June in England, within which 99,080 children or expected children were living.

London accounted for the vast majority of cases – 49,630 of the 66,980 households are in the capital compared with 44,270 the year before.

The rise in families with dependant children living in temporary accommodation has squeezed the amount of help available for single young people in housing need, say youth homelessness charities such as Depaul UK and YMCA England.

The problem has become so acute in London that charity Centrepoint has set up a scheme that provides a night bus ticket, so homeless young people get some sleep and a hot shower and meal in the morning.

Martin Houghton-Brown, chief executive of Depaul UK, which has set up a nightstop service to try to tackle rough sleeping (see below), says the rise in demand for temporary accommodation is partly driven by cuts to prevention services.

"Young people's problems are escalating because there is no early intervention and they're becoming homeless when previously they might have been picked up by statutory or non-statutory youth services," he says. "As we've seen those services dry up I think we're seeing the level of need increase."

He adds that pressure on housing in London means supported accommodation placements are breaking down more easily.

Denise Hatton, chief executive of YMCA England, and Paul Noblet, head of public affairs at Centrepoint, also believe a shortage of affordable housing is driving the rise in bed and breakfast (B&B) use.

"Due to a severe lack of investment in building social housing and the granting of planning permission for affordable residential properties, we are now in a situation where there is a lack of accommodation suitable for housing families and young people," says Hatton.

"As such, local authorities have been left in a position where the only options available to use are B&Bs and other temporary accommodation."

To overcome these issues, Houghton-Brown believes local authorities need to continue commissioning youth homelessness services.

He also thinks early intervention is "critical" in preventing a young person becoming homeless because when "a young person becomes involved in statutory homeless services they are three times more likely to be involved in adult homeless services".

Targeted support

A spokesman for Homeless Link also says providing early support can help mitigate the impact of becoming homeless and that more targeted support is needed for groups known to be at high risk, such as young offenders and looked-after children.

"For young people who are unable to stay at home, suitable crisis accommodation needs to be available, along with supported accommodation to help young people move towards independent living," the spokesman says.

Hatton adds that young people in supported accommodation need to be helped to move on to more permanent housing in order to overcome a shortage in places and reduce youth homelessness.

However Noblet says this will be difficult to achieve due to the shortage of funding at the moment.

"We have seen a lot of money taken out of the sector and as long as that continues we're really going to struggle to provide shelter and hostel places that we need."

Depaul Nightstop UK: Emergency accommodation for young people

Depaul Nightstop UK is a service of youth homelessness charity Depaul UK that supports a network of 40 Nightstop services across the UK, with three in Wales, two in Scotland and one on the Isle of Man.

Nightstop services see homeless young people aged 16 to 25 provided with emergency accommodation from approved members of the public, who have to go through training before commencing as a volunteer with their local Nightstop service.

According to Depaul UK chief executive Martin Houghton-Brown there are nearly 500 volunteer households around the country, who give the homeless young people a meal, nightclothes, a wash kit and breakfast.

Depending on the needs of the young person and the availability of the host, placements can last from one night to an extended stay, and latest figures from the charity show 13,500 "bed nights" were provided in 2014.

Nancy, a teacher from Enfield, who hosts with her family, says people may worry they will get the stereotypical homeless young person battling drink and drugs but this is not true.

"Young people who come to stay are always incredibly grateful and warm and it is always a positive experience for me and my family," she says. "The Nightstop team does training and vetting to make sure everyone is safe."

Nightstop services also carry out a range of other services, which includes hosting a 24-hour emergency "on-call" system to support volunteers, providing on-going training to volunteers, and referring young people back to recognised agencies to look at longer-term housing options.

Nancy adds: "You don't have to be a trained social worker to help – often all it takes is a smile, a roof over their heads and a warm meal to turn someone's life around."