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The statistics, compiled by Shelter, suggest that 16,500 people will be homeless across Greater Manchester, where we are based, half of whom will be children. The problem is most acute in Manchester where Shelter says 9,042 people do not have a home, 4,326 of them children.

The latest official statistics show 358,370 households contacted their local authority for support after being threatened with homelessness or losing their home in 2023-24, up more than 10% in a year. Of these, 324,990 were assessed as homeless.

Record numbers of households are living in temporary accommodation in England. A total of 123,100 households were living in temporary accommodation on 30 June 2024 –  higher than at any other point since records began in 1998 and an annual increase of 16.3%.

The number of households with children in temporary accommodation rose by 15.1% to 78,420. The total number of children living in temporary accommodation has now reached 159,380 children.

Responding to the figures, Matt Downie, chief executive of Crisis, said: “These figures are further evidence that the current approach to tackling homelessness is failing.  

“It is absolutely heartbreaking that hundreds of thousands of children are being forced to live in substandard temporary accommodation. No child should have to sleep in a damp and mouldy B&B. With the cost of living increasing, the number of social homes being built decreasing, and benefits remaining frozen, this will only get worse unless we adopt a new approach.  

“The Westminster government must be courageous through its upcoming homelessness strategy to reverse these trends and put in place solutions that provide safe and affordable accommodation to everyone who needs it. We cannot become desensitized to these statistics. Behind these numbers are struggling parents anxious about how they will keep a safe roof over their children’s heads. These figures are a call for action – and they require an immediate response.” 

Meanwhile, an estimated 3,898 people were counted as sleeping rough across England on a single night in autumn 2023. The official rough sleeping snapshot was up more than a quarter on the 3,069 people counted in 2022 and is more than double the 1,768 people on the streets in 2010.

The London-only Combined Homelessness and Information Network (Chain) figures are considered to be more accurate than the official one-night count. 

The most recent annual count showed 11,993 rough sleepers spotted on London’s streets between April 2023 and March 2024. That’s a 19% increase on the previous year’s total and 58% higher than a decade ago.

In October, a quarterly count showed an 18% increase between numbers recorded through July to September 2024 when compared to same period in 2023.