Facts about divorce and housing

In 1996 over 130,000 households were accepted as homeless by local authorities in the UK. But this is not the whole story. Official figures only include those homeless households defined as being in priority need for social housing. The majority of single homeless people and couples without children are not seen to fall within this category. In 1996 a survey showed that 141,000 young people between the ages of 16 and 25 experienced homelessness in Britain's urban districts. (Produced for the Inquiry into Preventing Youth Homelessness by Housing and Community Research Unit, Staffordshire University), Some have estimated (E.g.. London Research Centre) that there could be as many as 100,000 single homeless people in London alone.

Homelessness costs lives, Crisis research in London shows that street dwellers are 35 times more likely to commit suicide and four times more likely to die from unnatural causes. The average life expectancy for those living on the streets of London is 42 years - compared with 76 years for the general population. (Crisis, Still Dying for a Home). Homelessness has destructive effects on individuals and the community, something must be done.

Inaccurate - homeless people come from a surprisingly wide variety of backgrounds.

Homeless people have a diverse experiences, circumstances, prospects and hopes. Some have comfortable backgrounds, while others have experienced poverty, neglect and abuse; some have been in full time education or employment while others are poorly educated and untrained; for some homelessness is a temporary crisis whilst for others it is a recurring problem.

Print this page

Information on this page is current and last updated: 12/03/2008

Call us now on: