Crisis helped a record number of homeless people this Christmas
- 20 Jan
The charity has helped over 4,500 people this Christmas, the most in its 40-year history.
Homeless charity Crisis reported a 22% rise in the number of people seeking shelter at its UK centres at Christmas.
Almost 4,500 people turned to Crisis for help over the Christmas period which is the largest number since its Christmas project began in 1971. Leslie Morphy, Crisis' chief executive said the rise was due to a shortage of housing, cuts to housing benefit, high unemployment, low pay and high rents. "If we are to avoid seeing yet more people come through our doors next Christmas, the government must address the chronic lack of affordable housing, take real steps to improve the private rented sector and urgently consider the impact its cuts are having, particularly in the capital," she said.
The charity's study on the impact of the recent economic and policy decisions found that 2012-13 rough sleeping in England rose by 6% with 9% of adults across England saying they had experience homelessness, reports the Guardian.
Centres were run by 10,000 volunteers and over 30,000 meals were served across the week. Art and music sessions were provided alongside IT services for people working on CVs.
A Crisis volunteer in London said: "Over the past two years I've seen an increase in the number of working people who have fallen on difficult times. A typical example this Christmas was a man who had lost his job, moved to London from Scotland to try to find work, his marriage had broken down as a result and before he knew it he found himself on the streets."
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Image source: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/935765
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