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Families hit by rise in homelessness

Thursday, 8 December 2011 3:18 PM

Housing minister Grant Shapps has urged families who face losing their home to seek help and advice as soon as they can, as new figures show a worrying rise in homelessness in England.

Figures released by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) show that 12,510 families were accepted as homeless and in priority need by councils between July and September. That’s a rise of six per cent on the same period in 2010 and one per cent on the previous quarter.

But housing charity Shelter pointed out that 35,680 families have been accepted as homeless in the first nine months of the year, a rise of 13 per cent on 2010.

Grant Shapps said: "It's easy to feel alone in the face of financial difficulty but there is help available. Every council has a legal duty to ensure that eligible homeless households are not "roofless", and can provide reams of free advice and information to prevent homelessness in the first place.

Campbell Robb, chief executive of Shelter said: "It is heartbreaking to think that so many families will be facing Christmas without a home to call their own. With someone facing losing their home every two minutes, the reality is this is a fate that could happen to any one of us. All it takes is one small thing, such as an illness or financial trouble, and things can soon spiral out of control.”

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