
Key homelessness statistics
-
129,000
young people
experienced or were at risk of homelessness in 2021-22
-
54 %
became homeless
because of a relationship breakdown with family and friends
-
20 %
of care leavers
experience homelessness within 2 years of leaving care
-
24 %
of the youth homelessness population
identifies as LGBTQ+, and are 12 times more likely to experience homelessness
-
27 %
of people accessing homelessness services
are from BAME communities
-
48 %
of adults over 25
who were homeless, first became homeless aged 20 or younger
-
35 %
of young homeless people
have mental health problems
-
16 %
of the general population
are diagnosed with a mental health condition, half as many as young people experiencing homelessness
-
28 %
of people in the UK
believe people sleeping rough are to blame for the fact they've ended up on the streets
-
72 %
of the population
believe rough sleepers could get themselves off the street if they wanted to
-
20 %
of 16-25 year-olds
sofa surfed in 2014, and roughly half of these did so for more than a month
-
225,000
young people in London
have stayed in an insecure or unsafe place because they had no safe place to call home
-
4 million
people each year
fall in to the category of the "hidden homeless", sofa surfing or living as a concealed adult in a household unit
-
£ 20,128
is the estimated cost
of a single person sleeping rough in the UK for 12 months
Sources:
- ProudTrust research on prevalence of LGBT young people who are homeless
- MentalHealth.org research on mental health in homeless people
- Homeless.org.uk Young and Homeless research
- Evolve Housing Perceptions of Homelessness research
- Centrepoint Ready To Move On research
- Centrepoint Databank Report 2021-22
Find out more


Young people’s stories
LandAid supports charities across the UK who give young people experiencing homelessness the lifeline that they so desperately need.

Projects we’ve supported
Find out more about the projects that have given young people a safe, secure and affordable place to call home.