Thread by @alexwfirth

🚨New research 🚨 out on families living in temporary accommodation in London - @HRW & @ChildhoodTrust

I have heard shocking stories from across London. In one of the richest cities in the world, children are living in uninhabitable housing.

Thread 👇
hrw.org/news/2022/01/1…

London has a homelessness problem, with 10 times more homeless families in temporary accommodation than the rest of England, including 86,000 homeless children. London also has the highest child poverty rate in the country.

The name “temporary” accommodation is misleading and masks how the state uses it as a long-term policy fix. People I spoke with had often been living in temporary accommodation for months and years at a time.

The accommodation is often substandard or poor quality. A lack of space is a major issue with multiple people sharing beds and whole families living in single rooms. Meals are eaten on the bed or the floor with no room for a table.

Toxic mould caused by a lack of ventilation is a common issue. It grows on the walls and above where children sleep. This can lead to health complications, and children are particularly at risk.

Cold temperatures were also a major issue in winter months. Metal walls or cracks around windows means that rooms become very hard to heat. These issues all impact children’s rights in different ways, including their education and health.

The government and local authorities need to urgently address this hidden aspect of the #housingcrisis by raising standards in temporary accommodation. Housing benefit payments should also be increased, and rates unfrozen.

But the main solution to this crisis needs to focus on providing good quality, affordable, permanent housing that people feel safe and secure in. Human Rights Watch is calling on the government to increase the amount of social housing to help protect families from homelessness.🏘️

Housing is a human right and families and children deserve to be able to live in a home that is safe, secure and decent. It is time this right was recognized by the UK government.

Huge thanks to amazing groups such as Accommodation Action (@acc_action), Housing Action Southwark and Lambeth (@HousingActionSL), and Praxis (@Praxis_Projects) who gave expert input. Thanks also to the @PostcodeLottery for supporting @HRW's work on poverty in the UK.

If you are interested in this issue, then follow @DanielHewittITV for some amazing reporting and tireless groups like @justlifeuk @LDNRentersUnion @magpieprojectuk and @FocusE15