NEARLY 700 homeless people are stuck in temporary accommodation in the North-East during the Covid pandemic, a report finds. 

Rising homelessness is already a major problem in the region, with the latest figures showing 171 per cent more people are homeless and trapped in temporary accommodation than five years ago.

But Shelter argues the economic chaos caused by Covid-19 risks turbo-charging the crisis.

READ MORE: Covid: More than 64,000 emergency parcels handed out at North-East food banks

The charity's alarming report reveals 690 people in the North-East are homeless and living in temporary accommodation during the pandemic. 

The analysis of government data shows the number of people in temporary accommodation in the North East jumped by 70 (11 per cent) in the first three months after the pandemic struck. 

Stockton-on-Tees has the highest number of people in temporary accommodation (114), followed by North Tyneside (109), and Newcastle upon Tyne (76). 

Click on each area on the map below to see how they compare:

However, the number of people experiencing homelessness is undoubtedly higher, as many people will be undocumented by local councils because they are sleeping rough or sofa-surfing. 

Shelter’s Homeless and Forgotten report examines the lives blighted by the housing emergency and lack of social homes, which is leaving thousands stuck in unstable temporary accommodation with nowhere else to go.

Temporary accommodation provided by councils can range from a self-contained flat to an emergency B&B room with shared facilities.

Across the-North East, 280 households (61 per cent) are currently placed into emergency B&Bs and hostels, where poor conditions and gross overcrowding are rife.  

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “Almost 700 people are homeless and stuck in temporary accommodation in the North-East.

"This should shame us all. With this deadly virus on the loose, 2020 has taught us the value of a safe home like never before. But too many are going without, because of the chronic lack of social homes.  

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“Many people will spend Christmas in grim, dangerous places, cut off from loved ones and faced with a daily struggle to eat or keep clean.

"As the country continues to reel from the financial shockwaves caused by the pandemic, our services will do all they can to support those battling homelessness.

"This year has been unbelievably tough, but with the public’s generous support we will do our best to give hope and help to everyone who needs us.”  

To expose the harsh reality of life without a safe home in the pandemic, Shelter conducted in-depth interviews with homeless families and people trapped in temporary accommodation across the country.

Over half the people interviewed were placed in temporary accommodation out of area, away from jobs, schools and support networks. Several people spoke about feeling lonely, abandoned and forgotten.  

Nearly everyone living in shared accommodation said it was impossible to maintain social distancing. Three people reported sharing basic facilities with people clearly displaying Covid-19 symptoms, resulting in intense fear. 

Over a third of those interviewed said they struggled to prepare food and eat properly during lockdown because of inadequate cooking facilities, with some reporting losing weight or suffering health problems as a result.  

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Many people also found it difficult to wash and do laundry due to unhygienic or inadequate washing facilities. A situation made worse as launderettes and public buildings closed because of the lockdown measures. 

Homelessness also has a big impact on mental wellbeing, with 20 out of 21 people saying their own, or their partner’s, mental health had been negatively affected by living in temporary accommodation. 

The charity is urging the public to support its frontline advisers as they work tirelessly to help growing numbers of people to find, or keep hold of, a home.  

To donate to Shelter’s winter appeal and give hope to people facing homelessness visit www.shelter.org.uk/donate