Rough sleepers in city almost quadruple in year

Demand for help for homelessness is unprecedented, officials say

The number of rough sleepers in Hull have almost quadrupled in the past year, according to the council.

A headcount found 39 people sleeping on the streets in the city on one night, up from 10 in 2022. It found eight rough sleepers in East Yorkshire.

Hull City councillor Jack Haines said the demand for help for homeless people was unprecedented.

The amount of people sleeping rough across England has more than doubled since 2010 and has been branded a "national shame" by the homelessness charity Crisis.

In Hull, the 39 people sleeping rough recorded in 2023 compares with 18 in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic, and 13 in 2013.

Hull’s 2023 total was higher than Birmingham's, which had 36, and Liverpool's, with 34.

In the run-up to Christmas, one rough sleeper told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he became homeless when his business failed.

He said: “I was the licensee of a pub in Scarborough, but it went bankrupt, a lot of pubs have closed there.”

'National problem'

The chief executive of Crisis, Matt Downie, said the figures were a sign of extreme inequality and called for a rethink at the highest levels of government.

He added higher levels of social housing needed to be built to tackle the problem long-term.

Mr Haines said Hull City Council was doing everything it could to tackle homelessness and to prevent people from sleeping rough.

“This is clearly a national problem which requires a national solution from central government urgently," he said.

An East Riding Council spokesperson said they were committed to eradicating homelessness.

A spokesperson for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said the government had spent £2.4bn on helping the homeless and rough sleepers, including £220m recently announced to fund more beds and services.