FEANSTA release yearly Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe

Since 2015, FEANTSA and the Fondation Abbé Pierre have released a yearly Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe. These annual reports look at the latest Eurostat data (EU-SILC) and assess EU countries' capacity to adequately house their populations.

The Third Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe 2018 reports increasing homelessness across most of the EU countries (Norway and Finland are the exception). The report also looked at homelessness within the United Kingdom. It found:

• Between 2011-2017, the number of households living in temporary accommodation increased by 60%.
• In March 2017 there were 77,240 households living in temporary accommodation.
• In 2016-2017 local authorities helped 105,240 households under threat of homelessness stay in their homes.
• There has been a large increase in the number of people sleeping rough. While this figure is difficult to calculate it was estimated that 4,134 people were sleeping rough on one night in 2016, a 134% increase compared with figures from 2010.
• Housing costs for poor households in the UK are among the highest in Europe. Between 2010-2016 poor households saw the cost of housing increase by 45%.
• People under the age of 30 have been particularly affected by budget cuts and austerity policies.
• There is a chronic lack of affordable housing. Between 2003- 2014, there has been a sharp rise (80%) in private rental housing and also an increase (42%) in social rental housing belonging to housing associations while there has been little change in owner-occupied housing and a decrease (32%) in social rented housing owned by local authorities.

The Director of FENTSA, Freek Spinnewijn, states:

“Housing exclusion and homelessness have taken dramatic proportions in the UK. For almost all indicators the UK scores bad in a European perspective and the situation has often worsened over the last few years.”

Read the full country profile for the United Kingdom here.