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Homelessness charity Crisis has called on the government to undertake a census of Britain’s hidden homeless to start to tackle a problem it estimates is costing the country £1.4bn a year, writes Paul Stephenson.

The charity also warned that the number of people living in bed and breakfast accommodation or hostels, or in temporary arrangements with family or friends could rise from an estimated 380,000 to one million by 2020.

Launching a campaign this week to publicise the scale of the problem, the charity said the huge cost of hidden homelessness came from temporary accommodation costs and benefit payments, together with lost income.

It said the government must recognise hidden homelessness as a major social problem, and establish the scale and distribution of the total homeless population, so that it can start to address the needs of these people.

•  Report from www.crisis.org.uk/hidden