One in every 422 people in the East are homeless
Figures from charity Shelter show that 274,000 people in England are without a home on any given night
There are concerns that a "rising tide" of evictions could lead to a worsening of the homeless crisis in the East of England
New research from homeless charity Shelter shows that nearly 15,000 people were either living on streets or in temporary accommodation, as of June this year in the region. The figure equates to 1 in every 422 people who are without a permanent home.
They also found that 274,000 people are without a permanent home in England on any given night, including 126,000 children.
While the numbers have been deemed "shameful" by the charity's chief executive, Shelter has warned that the end of Covid restrictions would mean "thousands more will soon be joining them".
In total, the charity discovered that 1 in every 206 people in England is homeless and is either sleeping rough or in temporary accommodation.
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In London, 1 in 53 people was homeless, the highest figures recorded. Luton however, is not far behind, with 1 in every 66 people homeless. Basildon and Harlow in Essex make up the top three towns in the East with the highest number of people who are homeless, with 1,140 and 643 people respectively.
Despite the shocking figures, the charity has said that their figures are an underestimate and that thousands of people sofa surfing to avoid the streets are going unreported.
Speaking about the rise in homelessness, Alice Klein from the charity, said that they have been inundated with calls for help.
"We're really worried that the number of people who are homeless is going to increase probably by thousands over the winter because we've got this combination of protections put in place over the pandemic lifting.
"The system is broken if we have this many families and children who are homeless in this day and age. What we have now is a really bad combination: Universal Credit uplift ending, energy prices going up and inflation is high, which means the cost of food is high.
"So everyday now, we're seeing about a thousand calls to our emergency helpline, but we just can't answer all the calls, all the time."