Nearly 500 children in temporary homes over Christmas period in Peterborough - with 50 families stuck in B&Bs

More than 450 homeless children spent Christmas in temporary accommodation across Peterborough, with many billeted in basic bed and breakfasts without their own kitchen or bathroom.

Housing charity Shelter says a national housing emergency is robbing youngsters of their childhoods, leaving them unable to play because of lack of space.

It says they are also turning up to school tired and hungry because they are sharing beds and their parents have no facilities to prepare them proper meals.

The latest data provided by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) for England shows approximately 488 children from 234 households were stuck living in temporary Peterborough accommodation at the latest count (at the end of June 2022).

This included 50 families living in B&Bs, hostels or refuges.

While figures for the festive period have not yet been published, in previous years there has often been no reduction in the number of children living in temporary accommodation between the last pre-Christmas update and December – and the total has been on the rise nationally.

Peterborough City Council has been approached by this newspaper for a comment.

What is temporary housing?

Temporary housing is accommodation secured by councils for homeless individuals or families under their statutory duties.

Charities expect the number of families to be stuck in such housing to rise due to people losing their homes amid the cost of living crisis.

Kiran Ramchandani, director of policy and external affairs at housing charity Crisis, said the situation was “truly shameful” and warned the country risks seeing more families forced into homelessness – sometimes for years at a time – without urgent action to address rising rents, the cost of living, and to build more affordable housing

She continued: “This instability is hugely damaging for children and young people, who are forced to endure cold conditions, without space to play or focus on their homework, and often travelling many miles to get to school.

“The government must act to prevent homelessness before it happens. This needs to include investing in housing benefit so it covers the true cost of renting and setting out a strategy to deliver the genuinely affordable homes that are desperately needed, rather than relying on temporary solutions.”