The number of people sleeping rough on the streets in Britain is on the rise according to recent statistics.
More Britons are joining the UK army of homeless and sleeping rough on the streets, according to fresh figures published by the Homelessness Monitor.
Fresh figures show rough sleeping has increased by 100 percent in some areas across the UK, while in a national count an increase of 23 percent has been recorded in a study carried out between autumn 2010 and 2011, local media reported.
As the coalition government continues to cut social services and council budgets, the increase in homelessness is greater than anything seen since the early 1990s. In London, an increase of 43 percent has been recorded as compared with the previous year’s statistics.
From among other countries’ nationals sleeping rough on the streets of London, a growing number of people from some eastern European nations, which are new comers to the European Union, are found sleeping rough on the London streets.
Figures published by the National Housing Federation show the number of people considered as statutory homeless has increased by 34 percent since 2009, while the use of bed-and-breakfast temporary accommodation to house homeless people has also increased dramatically.
Figures also showed that there were 2,750 families forced to live in temporary accommodation between January and March 2011, and the number of families in the same period for 2012 had risen to 3,960.
The Homelessness Monitor is a five year joint project between York University and Herriot Watt University Edinburgh.
Meanwhile, the homelessness charity, Shelter, reported that there are thousands of families across London at risk of losing their homes due to difficulties with falling behind with rents or mortgage payments.
Campbell Rob, chief executive of Shelter, said, “It’s truly shocking how many people in this country are living with the threat of becoming homeless. In some areas, the risk of being evicted or repossessed is so high that one home in every street could be affected.”
MOL/HSN/HE
