Britain's housing emergency is now devastating its oldest citizens, with leading charities reporting a dramatic and alarming increase in people over the age of 60 seeking help for homelessness.
A Generation in Crisis: Sleeping in Cars and Shelters
Housing organisations have documented cases where individuals in their sixties, seventies, and even eighties are developing severe health problems after being forced to sleep in cars for months or rely on camp beds in emergency shelters. This comes as high private rents, frozen housing benefits, and a critical shortage of social housing converge to push pensioners into destitution.
Marie Dennehy, a senior service manager at St Mungo's, stated they have witnessed a clear increase in over-65s, often with complex health issues, needing emergency housing support in the last two years. "We've got a guy in the service at the moment who's 87 – it's madness," she said. "We never used to see the number of pensioners we're seeing now."
Dennehy explained that council budget cuts and the dearth of social housing mean single homeless applicants, including the elderly, are frequently not deemed a priority. She argued that an 87-year-old in good health is still far more vulnerable than a younger person and deserves secure accommodation.
The Systemic Failures Pushing Pensioners into Poverty
Dan Holland from the Salvation Army's homelessness services team revealed that 10% of residents in their accommodation are now over 55. He linked the crisis directly to the decline of home ownership and the rise of insecure renting later in life. "Lots more people are renting, relying on housing benefit which has been frozen, so it's not rocket science, eventually they will end up experiencing homelessness," Holland said.
One victim of this systemic failure is Raymond, 63, who slept in his car for seven weeks after his marriage broke down. Repeatedly told by his council he was not a priority, he eventually sought refuge at a Salvation Army centre in the north-west. The confinement caused his legs to swell badly, and his diet deteriorated to the point his doctor prescribed supplements. "I have no idea what I'm going to do in the future as I'm approaching retirement," he said.
Holland warned that services must now prepare to provide palliative and end-of-life care for a growing number of people dying while homeless or in unstable housing.
Renting into Retirement: A Future of Fear and Instability
Research from Crisis underscores the scale of the problem: one in five older people cannot retire due to housing costs, and homelessness among the elderly in England has risen by more than 50% in five years. The number of over-55s in temporary accommodation has also jumped by 35% since March 2022.
Experts point to a deeply entrenched housing crisis where home ownership is unattainable, forcing people to rent into their later years and leaving them exposed to eviction or unaffordable rent hikes. Ben Twomey, chief executive of Generation Rent, said soaring rents are locking people into unsuitable homes for decades, damaging health and pushing some into homelessness.
Edith Gomes Munda, 61, from Huntingdon, embodies this anxiety. Forced to move twice recently due to landlords selling up and rent increases, she fears a future of perpetual displacement. "I'm now 61 and I will get my pension soon but I don't know if it will cover the rent," she said. Having missed the chance to buy a home, she sees social housing as her only option, but faces impossibly long waiting lists.
With the government's long-term housing strategy delayed until next March, campaigners are demanding urgent action. Lisabel Miles, housing policy manager at Age UK, stressed that even a reformed private rental sector is unsuitable for many older people. "There's going to be a lot of older renters emerging into retirement with real concerns about where they can go," she warned.
