CIH responds to the latest homelessness statistics — January to March 2026

This morning the government released the latest statutory homelessness statistics, covering the first quarter of 2026.

You can read the statistics in full here.

They show a record high in the number of households in temporary accommodation since the same time last year, now totalling 135,580 households. The number of people threatened with homelessness and owed a prevention duty rose by 1.8% since last year, whilst those owed a relief duty after being initially assessed as homeless decreased by 5.3%.

The number of children living in temporary accommodation has sadly risen again to a total of 177,530. Furthermore, since the same release last year, the number of homeless households with children in temporary accommodation has risen by 0.4%, representing over 63.8% of all households in temporary accommodation.

The effort by the government to reduce B&B usage for families over the six-week limit has seen a continued fall quarter-on-quarter since June 2024.

In June, the government responded to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee report into housing conditions in temporary accommodation. It committed to updating the committee in the autumn on how they will improve data collection on quality conditions in temporary accommodation. They also stated there would be a review of the validity of reported falls in B&B usage and the placement of families that include children with single male adults, as well as a review into extending the six-week limit to accommodation that does not meet the Decent Homes Standard by 2035. These actions, alongside those put forth in the National Plan to End Homelessness, must underpin the direction of travel going forward.    

Long term, creating more secure and affordable tenancies by increasing the amount new social rented homes is the answer to the homelessness crisis. Right now, the most effective way to combat this is to ensure that social security payments cover private rents by restoring Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates so that at least the bottom 30% of rents in an area are covered.

With homelessness firmly at the heart of the government’s agenda, the Autumn Budget is the moment to turn ambition into lasting change.

Stephanie Morphew, policy lead on homelessness, commented: “Since the last statistical release, Andy Burham has become Prime Minister and placed homelessness at the centre of his mission. Having previously described the number of children in the UK living in temporary accommodation as a “national shame”, we look forward to hearing from the government what steps they will take to address today’s record high of households living in temporary accommodation.”