Rise in disabled people facing homelessness in England

More than 60,000 disabled households successful England faced homelessness past year, an summation of astir 75% since 2019, authoritative figures show.

Analysis of authorities information by the homelessness foundation Crisis besides shows the magnitude of societal lodging fixed to disabled radical has gone down.

The numbers are apt to adhd to unease successful the Labour Party implicit planned cuts to disablement benefits, with 1 MP informing the authorities against going "further and faster successful the incorrect direction."

A authorities spokesperson said £1bn was being fixed to councils this twelvemonth to "support families faster and halt radical becoming stateless successful the archetypal place"

Figures released past week amusement that 21% of households facing homelessness successful the past 3 months of past twelvemonth had immoderate benignant of carnal sick wellness oregon disability.

Overall homelessness roseate importantly successful caller years, earlier peaking successful aboriginal 2024, but these figures amusement that homelessness among households with a disablement has risen faster.

Some 62,040 households with carnal sick wellness and disablement needs faced homelessness successful 2023/24, compared with 35,860 successful 2018/19.

Government information shows the fig of societal lodging lettings fixed to households with a disablement fell from 20% successful 2022/23 to 16% successful 2023/24.

A fig of Labour MPs person expressed interest successful caller weeks astir cuts to payment payments for pensioners and radical with disabilities.

Labour MP Paula Barker, who co-chairs a cross-party radical focused connected homelessness, said that "certain people" successful authorities "talk astir going further and faster, but we request to spell further and faster successful the close direction, not the incorrect direction".

She said the disablement homelessness numbers were "hugely significant" and would person "a existent detrimental and knock-on impact" erstwhile combined with the payment changes.

In March, the authorities announced a large payment shake-up to prevention money, including changes to a disablement payment called idiosyncratic independency outgo (Pip).

Barker added that the Treasury had "imposed a straightjacket" connected the government.

She said determination was a "deep-rooted Treasury orthodoxy from civilian servants that has sadly fitted hand-in-glove with a chancellor who has been consenting to spell on with that".

During past year's wide election, Sir Keir Starmer promised that a Labour authorities would bring guardant a strategy "to enactment Britain backmost connected way to ending homelessness".

Some Labour MPs person go progressively acrophobic that 10 months connected from the election, nary specified strategy has emerged.

"Having a imperishable location is truthful important for your health," says Julie, who has terrible osteoarthritis.

Two years ago, Julie and her teenage lad spent 5 months successful impermanent accommodation successful Oxfordshire.

This included staying successful 3 hotels, 1 of which couldn't accommodate her mobility scooter successful her country and different of which had nary cooking facilities and nary fridge.

"It was truly hard and it truly affected my health," she says, "we couldn't cook, we were eating instant pasta. It was hard to get astir successful the aged wheelchair I had astatine the time."

Julie says she developed type-2 diabetes during the clip she was surviving successful impermanent accommodation.

Alex Bax, main enforcement of homelessness and healthcare foundation Pathway, says the "health work is excessively often incapable to supply the attraction that radical facing homelessness need".

He called connected ministers to instrumentality "bold enactment to dainty mediocre wellness and homelessness successful the joined-up mode that these figures amusement is truthful desperately needed".

Matt Downie, main enforcement of Crisis, said ministers request to "provide renewed information and stableness for radical crossed the country" and called connected the authorities to physique 90,000 caller societal homes a year.

He said the figures connected disablement homelessness were "really concerning" and would pb to "more hardship, and much unit connected already overstretched councils".

A authorities spokesperson said ministers had inherited "a devastating lodging situation and a breached societal attraction system".

They said they were providing £1bn "for important homelessness services this year" and "tackling the basal causes" by gathering 1.5 cardinal caller homes successful England.

A elder Treasury root said "the Labour authorities has invested an further £40bn into our nationalist services, including the NHS, and accrued superior concern successful our roads, obstruction and lodging by much than £100bn".