Almost 1,000 people homeless in Bedford on any given night

Almost 1,000 people were homeless in Bedford on any given night in 2022, new estimates suggest.

Shelter, a leading homelessness charity, has used government statistics, Freedom of Information requests and data from the membership charity Homeless Link to work out how many people are without a home in England.

It estimates 885 people were homeless in Bedford on any given night in 2022 – including 352 children.

This was equivalent to one in every 209 people in the area, the charity said.

All the homeless people in Bedford were in temporary accommodation.

These figures do not include the various forms of hidden or unofficial homelessness, such as sofa surfing or overcrowded homes.

Shelter chief executive Polly Neate said they were expecting a rise in homelessness in 2023.

She said: “A cold doorway or a grotty hostel room is not a home, but this is reality for too many people today.

“Our frontline advisers are working tirelessly to help people who are desperate to escape homelessness – from the parents doing all they can to provide some shred of a normal family life while stuck in an emergency B&B, to the person terrified of another night sleeping rough.”

She added: “With private rents and living costs continuing to soar, thousands of people are not just facing a winter of worry, they are at risk of losing the roof over their head.”

The estimates suggest around 2,400 people were sleeping rough across England, with a further 15,000 people in hostels or supported accommodation.

Nearly 250,000 people – mainly families – were living in temporary accommodation.

The overall figure is down slightly from the previous year – 274,000 were estimated to be homeless on any given night in 2021.

Despite a slight drop in the number of people in temporary accommodation compared to the year before, the use of temporary accommodation has risen by an “alarming” 74% over the last decade, Shelter said.

The charity said this was due to a “chronic shortage” of social homes.

Labour MP Paula Barker, shadow homelessness and rough sleeping minister, said the figures were “shameful”.

She said: “The Conservatives promised to prevent homelessness and end rough sleeping by the end of next year, but they are completely and utterly failing, with devastating consequences for thousands of families and children.

“This tragic trend will only continue unless the Government gets an urgent grip on this crisis.”

Across the East of England, 17,201 people were estimated to be homeless on any given night in 2022 – one in every 368 residents in the region.

A Government spokeswoman said it had given £366 million to local authorities this year to help prevent evictions and provide temporary housing.

She said: “Over half a million households have been prevented from becoming homeless since 2018 through the Homelessness Reduction Act.

“We are also providing significant support to help people through these tough times by holding down energy bills and delivering up to £1,350 in direct cash payments to millions of vulnerable households.”