Eviction from a private tenancy accounts for 78% of the rise in homelessness since 2011
Posted 23 Mar 2017
For immediate release: 23 March 2017
Contact: Shelter press office, 0207 505 2162 or 07850901142 (out of hours)
New government figures on homelessness released today show:
The loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness, with 18,750 households becoming homeless after an eviction from a privately rented home in 2016
In the last year alone, 59,260 households were accepted as homeless by their local council – a rise of 22% over the last 5 years
Since 2011, the rise in the number of households evicted from a privately rented home has accounted for 78% of the rise in homelessness
Responding to the figures, interim chief executive of Shelter Graeme Brown said: “The rise in homelessness lays bare the devastating impact that expensive and unstable private renting is having on people’s lives. What's worse is that behind these shocking statistics, we know there are thousands more renters living in constant fear that just one slip up - like a cut in hours or sudden rent rise – could leave them homeless.
“Every day at Shelter we hear from families experiencing the trauma of homelessness because, no matter how hard they try, they just can’t find anywhere else to live when their rental tenancy ends. The drought of affordable homes coupled with crippling welfare cuts has made private renting simply unaffordable for too many low earners.
“In the long-term, the only solution is to fix our broken housing system by building the genuinely affordable homes we so desperately need.”
Notes to editors
Anyone who is worried about losing their home can get free and independent, expert advice from Shelter at www.shelter.org.uk/advice or by calling the helpline on 0808 800 4444.
Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) statistics were released for the three months from October 2016 to December 2016. The last twelve months of data is from January 2016 to December 2016. We compared this to data from January – December 2011.
The number of homeless households accepted as homeless by their local authority is from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) Live homelessness table 770. These figures are the number of households who have approached their council for help, and been found to be unintentionally homeless and in priority need. As a result, the council has accepted they have a legal duty to help them find a home.
The number of households made homeless after their assured shorthold tenancy ended area is from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) Live homelessness table 774.
Overall, the number of households accepted as homeless has increased by 10,750 since 2011. Breaking this down by the reason a household lost their last settled home shows that some categories have seen an increase in the number of households becoming homeless over this time, and some a decrease. The categories that have contributed an increase since 2011 are relationship breakdown, family and friends (other than parents) no longer being willing or able to accommodate a household, the ending of an assured shorthold tenancy, rent arrears and loss of other renting or tied housing. The number of households made homeless for these reasons has increased by 13,010 since 2011. Of this increase, 78% is from an increase in the number of households reporting that the reason for the loss of their last settled home is the end of an assured shorthold tenancy.