CIH responds to the latest Statutory Homelessness Statistics in England

The latest statutory homelessness statistics for the last quarter of 2025 have been published. In comparison to the same quarter last year, there has been a five per cent increase in the number of households in temporary accommodation, with a total of 134,210. However, this is the first time since 2022 that the number has fallen between quarters – a modest 0.4 per cent.

On New Year's Eve 2025, 176,130 children did not have a place to call home. On average each of these children’s stays in temporary accommodation were estimated to last between two and five years. The number of households with children in temporary accommodation has risen at a higher rate - 5.9 per cent over the year, but no significant rise since the last quarter. 

Additionally, there has been a 57.1 per cent increase over the previous year in households owed a prevention duty after being required to leave Home Office accommodation.

The capital remains the epicentre of this crisis with households in London being seven and half times more likely to live in temporary accommodation than the rest of England.

The number of families in B&Bs has fallen quarter on quarter since June 2024. However, recent reporting has shown that these numbers may be misleading as council-owned B&B accommodation is not represented in these statistics, despite presenting the same experience and challenges for the households placed in them. We would urge the government to update how this data is recorded to better reflect overall B&B usage.

Stephanie Morphew, policy lead on homelessness, commented: “As rights strengthen in the private rented sector and prevention activities at councils strengthen, a plateau in new duties owed might be on the horizon. This is welcome, but without a plan to move households from temporary accommodation to stable affordable-housing – we risk leaving households in expensive and unsuitable temporary accommodation.

“In the short term, ensuring the social security payments cover private rents by restoring Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates is the single most effective lever to transition households from expensive and unsuitable temporary accommodation into a stable home. We look forward to the government’s long-term housing strategy delivering a vision for a housing sector that works for us all.”

You can read CIH’s response to the national plan to end homelessness here and find our member briefing on it here. Our analysis of the strategy from a migration perspective is available here.

Additionally, the HGLC committee recently published its report on conditions in temporary accommodation in England. You can read our response here and the full report, which heavily utilises CIH’s submission, here.