HOMELESSNESS in England has soared in the past year due to sky-high rents and the asylum backlog, latest official figures revealed today.

The government’s annual statistics show that 146,430 households were assessed as being threatened with homelessness and therefore owed a prevention duty in 2023-24, up 3.1 per cent from the year before.

More than 57,300 households were threatened with homelessness due to the end of an assured shorthold tenancy, a 4.6 per cent increase on 2022-23, and 178,560 households were assessed as homeless and therefore owed a relief duty.