Number of rough sleepers on streets triples in seven years
THE number of people forced to sleep rough in the West Midlands has more than tripled since 2010.
Official figures show there are 132 rough sleepers in the region, up from 39 people six years ago.
And that includes 55 people sleeping rough in Birmingham alone, a shocking increase from the figure of just nine rough sleepers recorded in the city in 2010.
But officials also admitted that their figures may underestimate the scale of the problem, because rough sleepers often try to avoid detection for their own safety.
The issue of homelessness in Birmingham came under the spotlight in December 2016 after CCTV showed a man who died in a car park behind a pub in Birmingham on Tuesday, as temperatures plummeted to -6C. At least two other homeless men have died in the last nine months on city centre streets.
West Midlands mayor Andy Street has said cutting homelessness is a top priority.
Mr Street last week launched a bid for the West Midlands to be the national pilot for a scheme where homeless addicts are given housing.
The scheme, known as Housing First, would provide homeless people with permanent accommodation.
There are thousands of homeless households in the West Midlands, but most people classed as homeless have some sort of roof over their heads such as temporary accommodation, a friend’s sofa or a room in a hostel. Charity Crisis produced a report in August warning there are 14,700 homeless households in the Midlands, and this number is set to rise to 28,400 by 2036. MP Ian Austin said the increase was “a shocking indictment of the lack of action the Conservatives have taken to tackle homelessness”. The MP said: “The government and the Mayor both promised to take action to end homelessness but instead there has been an explosion of rough sleeping in the West Midlands with homelessness tripling since 2010. This is another example of the devastating impact of the current housing crisis.
“The number of homes in the region has barely increased over recent years, home ownership has fallen, private renting has doubled, the costs of buying or renting a home in the private sector have soared and the number of social rented homes available to confront the housing crisis is lower than in previous decades.”