Hundreds are living in places like hotels or B&Bs(Image: Northcliffe Media Ltd.)

The number of homeless children living in temporary accommodation in the Bristol area has continued to rise under the new Labour government.

A total of 2,119 children in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire were homeless and living in temporary housing such as hotels and B&Bs between October and December 2024.

That’s up from 2,071 children in the previous quarter, and 1,877 children in the same period of 2023. It’s also the highest on record since comparable figures became available in 2019.

The majority of the children (1,948 of them) were in Bristol. That’s up from 1687 at the same time last year.

Across England as a whole, the numbers continued to rise up to the end of December.

A total of 165,510 children were homeless and living in temporary housing such as hotels and B&Bs between October and December 2024.

That’s up from 163,970 children in the previous quarter and 145,780 at the same time last year.

Bristol has seen a small increase in the number of families stuck in B&Bs for over six weeks.

In Bristol, 12 families had been in B&Bs for over six weeks at the end of last year.

That’s up from 10 in the three months to October and seven at the same point last year.

The problem of homeless households having to live in temporary accommodation is more prominent in some parts of the country.

The highest rates of households living in temporary homes are all in London.

Some 58.0 out of every 1,000 households in Newham were living in temporary homes in the last three months of 2024. That’s the highest rate in the country.

In London as a whole, 19.7 out of every 1,000 homes were in temporary digs.

Slough had the highest rate outside of the capital with 20.7 out of every 1,00 homes.

In Luton it was 14.5 out of every 1,000. In Hastings it was 13.3, in Manchester it was 12.3, in Birmingham it was 12.1 and in Crawley it was also 12.1.

Barry Parsons, chair of the Homes and Housing Delivery Committee at Bristol City Council, said: “These newly released figures paint a stark picture of the challenge homelessness presents to cities like Bristol, and lays bare the uphill battle facing councils.

“Bristol, like many other cities across the UK, remains in the grip of a housing crisis, as demand continues to outstrip supply and affordable homes become increasingly scarce.

“This administration remains committed to addressing homelessness in the city. Earlier this year, we set out an £11.3 million investment plan for homelessness support services, as well as redesigning our homelessness service to better support people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

“Our Tackling Homelessness Programme has also made great strides in reducing the number of families in shared accommodation for more than six weeks. The scale of this issue is immense, but we will continue to work with our partners across the city towards our shared goal of ending homelessness in Bristol.”

A spokesperson for South Gloucestershire Council said: “In common with many Local Authorities, we have recorded an overall increase in the number of residents being placed in temporary accommodation while we support them to find permanent homes.

“In South Gloucestershire we have 135 children in temporary accommodation, and all are part of households in self-contained placements such as houses or flats, rather than bed and breakfast hotels.

“We remain committed to working with these families to support them to find settled homes where the children can thrive.”

North Somerset Council advised that it currently has no families with children staying in hotels or B&Bs for more than six weeks.

A spokesperson added: “We monitor this closely and do our best to place families in self-contained accommodation to avoid using B&Bs, hostels, or shared facilities wherever possible.

“Our homelessness prevention rates remain above both the national and South West averages, helping to reduce the need for temporary accommodation.”

Dan Wilson Craw, Deputy Chief Executive of Generation Rent said: “Behind every statistic are thousands of stories of people facing some of the most stressful, traumatic and insecure times of their lives.

“More and more children are spending their formative years trapped living in temporary accommodation, often in overcrowded and unsafe conditions and at huge cost to local authorities. This is a national scandal that demands government action.

“Our rental system is broken. With rent prices soaring far beyond what we earn, people become trapped living in temporary accommodation because they simply can’t find somewhere affordable to live.

“The Government’s house building programme is welcome, but will take years to have a noticeable impact. People need change now.

“It must intervene to slam the brakes on soaring rents, while also unfreezing Local Housing Allowance so those on low incomes have more options in finding a home.”