FIGURES revealed today show 143 children in the North-East will wake up homeless or in temporary accommodation this Christmas

A new report by Shelter the homelessness charity, found, nationally, one in every 111 children is currently homeless, and with the country experiencing a worsening housing crisis.

This year has seen the highest numbers of homeless children in a decade.

Tracy Guy, manager of a Shelter hub in Newcastle, said: “It’s a national scandal that the number of homeless children in Britain has risen every year for the last decade. No child should have to spend Christmas without a home.”

In the last year alone, 61 per cent of the families helped by Shelter’s frontline services were homeless or on the brink of losing their home.

With at least two families becoming homeless every day in the North-East, the charity is calling on the public to support its urgent Christmas appeal.

Ms Guy said: “Many of us will spend Christmas day enjoying the festive traditions we cherish in the safe comfort of our homes, but sadly it will be a different story for the homeless children in the region.

“While these children aren’t necessarily living in B&Bs and hostels, they are sadly living in unstable temporary accommodation.”

In England, where the highest number of families are placed into B&Bs, 45 per cent stay beyond the six-week legal limit.

The charity’s findings also revealed the psychological turmoil experienced by families living in these cramped conditions for often long periods of time.

Ms Guy said “We’re asking people to help a homeless family and make giving to Shelter their new Christmas tradition.”

To help visit www.shelter.org.uk or text SHELTER to 70080 to donate £3.