Shelter calls for more social housing

The number of homeless households living in temporary accommodation has soared in the 40 years since Shelter was formed, according to research from the charity.

It says that a steep decline in the building of social housing has left more than one million children in bad housing.

The report says that while the number of homeless households in temporary accommodation has risen from 6,400 to more than 100,000 since 1976, annual building of social homes has fallen by 87 per cent.

It says that 10 years ago Tony Blair, then leader of the opposition, made a commitment to cutting rough sleeping, which saw numbers decline dramatically, and calls for a similar commitment to end bad housing for children.