Living in temporary accommodation has contributed to the deaths of 104 children in England over the past six years, according to data compiled by the all-party parliamentary group for households in temporary accommodation. Of those, 76 were under the age of one.
The figures, drawn from the National Child Mortality Database covering April 2019 to March 2025, also reveal 64 stillbirths and 27 neonatal deaths involving mothers in temporary accommodation in 2024 alone. Experts say the housing crisis is forcing families into conditions that endanger lives.
Siobhain McDonagh, the chair of the parliamentary group, said the increase in child deaths linked to temporary accommodation was appalling. “We need urgent, sustained action to bring down the number of homeless children and to ensure that no family is left in conditions that put lives at risk,” she said.
Matt Downie of Crisis called the situation a “normalised emergency”, while Dr Laura Neilson of the Shared Health Foundation described it as “absolutely scandalous”. A separate cross-party committee report concluded that many families were living in temporary accommodation that was “unfit for human habitation”.
The government was criticised for failing to collect official data on the physical condition of temporary accommodation. Homelessness minister Alison McGovern said the government was committed to eradicating unsuitable accommodation through the Child Poverty Strategy.
