Southwark has one classroom worth of homeless children for every primary school, with about 3,500 children living in temporary accommodation in 2024, up from 1,900 in 2020. The number of youths in temporary accommodation in the borough rose by 77% in four years, outpacing the 25% rise across England. Children in temporary accommodation face mental health problems, malnutrition, school difficulties, immediate trauma, long-term developmental delays, and emotional scarring. Southwark Council reports having built or begun construction on more than 3,000 council homes since 2013/14 and records a 72% homelessness-prevention success rate in 2024-2025.
There is one classroom worth of homeless children for every primary school in Southwark, according to a new report from the New Economics Foundation (NEF). The number of youths in temporary accommodation (TA) in the south London borough rose by 77% in four years, meaning the area alone accounted for almost one in 30 households in TA nationwide, the paper found. Hollie Wright, the report's author, told BBC London that children in TA faced wide-ranging harms including mental health problems, malnutrition and difficulties in school, which could be a "disaster" for their future.
"As the largest local authority landlord in London, we have been greatly impacted by the national housing crisis, but we are doing all that we can to alleviate these pressures on our residents. "Since 2013/14 we've built or began construction on more than 3,000 council homes, more than anywhere else in England. "Our Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy 2025-2030 seeks to address this crisis head-on by tackling the root causes of homelessness through early intervention working across services and departments. "In 2024-2025 we recorded a 72% success rate in preventing homelessness, including amongst families with children, where early help was provided."
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