Homelessness: An overview

Homelessness: An overview 

There has been much debate about the causes of homelessness. Causes such as:

• poor physical health
• mental health problems
• alcohol and drugs issues, bereavement
• experience of the criminal justice system
• poverty
• inequality
• housing supply and affordability
• unemployment
• welfare
• income policies
• domestic abuse

In England, a lot of social and economic factors crop up: the rise in unemployment and those living in poverty lagged behind the 2008 economic crash while the lack of affordable housing is being termed ‘the housing crisis’ and is driving low-income families into temporary housing instead, some who are not as lucky end up in the streets. And issues with the roll-out of the Universal Credit are continuing to drive the poorest closer to the brink.

In an article written by Liam Geraghty in the Big Issue, he states that "Between 2016 and 2017, a total of 59,090 households were accepted as homeless by their local councils across the UK – 22 per cent more than five years previously." This chart shows some statistics on the people recorded to be rough sleepers from 2010 to 2016.

I will keep on updating. Also, I think this is a good document to look at to get more recent statistics from 2018.