Truth behind Preston's working homeless

One quarter of households identified as homeless in Preston last summer were in work, figures reveal.

Homeless charity Crisis said it is "unacceptable" that there are thousands of people in paid work but without a home across England during the coronavirus pandemic, and called for long-term investment in social housing.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government data shows 226 households were entitled to help from Preston City Council between July and September – 135 of which were assessed as homeless and 91 at risk of becoming so.

Of these, 38 had at least one person working full-time and 18 part-time – 25 per cent of all homeless households in the area whose employment status was known.

There were also two households where the main applicant was a student, or in training, and five where they were seeking work.

Between July and September 2018, the last time these figures were published for this period, there were 237 households in need of help – with 19 per cent in work.

Across England, almost a quarter (15,590) of households assessed as homeless had full-time or part-time jobs between July and September last year.

Crisis said the situation could have been even worse without the uplift in Universal Credit and the furlough scheme, but that people will continue to struggle when restrictions are eased.

Jon Sparkes, chief executive of Crisis, said: “It’s unacceptable that thousands of people in England cannot afford a place to live, despite being in work.

“We are calling on the Westminster Government to provide emergency grants and loans to renters who have been forced into arrears by the pandemic and extend the benefit cap grace period until the end of the pandemic.

"But we must not lose sight of the fact that homelessness amongst workers has existed long before Covid-19 and to end it once and for all, we need long-term investment in affordable housing.”

In Preston, 109 households (49 per cent) owed help by the council between July and September had at least one member registered as unemployed, not seeking work, or at home.

A further 44 (20 per cent) could not work due to illness or disability and three (one per cent) were retired.

Housing charity Shelter said less than half of households found to be homeless nationwide were not helped to find a home – showing the impact of a lack of suitable social housing.

The three most common triggers of homelessness in England between July and September were households no longer being able to stay with families and friends (33 per cent), the loss of a private tenancy (14 per cent) and domestic abuse (11 per cent).

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said thousands of people are struggling to survive the "never-ending nightmare" of the pandemic, as a result of decades of "political neglect".

A spokeswoman for the Government said it had provided "unprecedented support" for renters during the pandemic through the evictions ban and welfare support.

She added that over £700m was being provided to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping this year, and over £12bn in affordable housing over five years.