Latest figures from the Communities and Local Government also show that 48,510 households were classified homeless last year, up 14% on 2010.
The number of people made homeless because their private sector tenancy ended or as a result of mortgage arrears also jumped sharply.
Jack Dromey, shadow housing minister for Labour, said “With homelessness rising by 14% and an increase in rough sleeping of 23% in 2011, it is time that the Government assessed the full impact of its failing policies on homelessness.”
“To help the thousands of families without homes and the 1.8 million families on housing waiting lists, the Government could take some immediate action to get the economy moving by levying a tax on bankers bonuses to build 25,000 more affordable homes, putting unemployed building workers back to work and creating a 100,000 jobs for young people.”
Leslie Morphy, chief executive of homeless charity Crisis, said: “Our worst fears are coming to pass. We face a perfect storm of economic downturn, rising joblessness and soaring demand for limited affordable housing combined with government policy to cut housing benefit plus local cuts to homelessness services.
“The results are clear: we have now had two years of rising homelessness, and with the worst of the cuts still to bite we can only predict that homelessness will continue to rise.”
