Sixteen homeless people have died of coronavirus in England, official data revealed today.
An Office for National Statistics report showed more homeless people died of Covid-19 than were expected to have been killed by alcohol poisoning or suicide – two of the leading causes of death – during the same period.
Charities called the deaths a ‘tragedy’ but praised councils for stepping in to protect vulnerable people and ‘undoubtedly’ saving many lives.
Figures show there are around 280,000 homeless people in the UK, a figure charity Shelter says includes those in temporary accommodation.
In March the Government urged councils to get all rough sleepers off the streets and put them up in hotels and B&Bs to protect them from the coronavirus.
More than three quarters of the homeless (78 per cent) have health problems and many struggle to get access to medical care, making them vulnerable to infection.
The ONS today revealed six out of the 16 Covid-19 deaths happened among people living in London, with three in the North West. There were no homeless coronavirus deaths recorded in Wales up to June 26, the report revealed.
Most victims were male, the ONS said, and the average age for the men was 58 years old – significantly younger than the average 79 years old for male Covid-19 victims in the general population.
The report did not give details of the female deaths because there were so few the women could be identified by their age and location, it said.
ONS data showed the number of homeless people who have died from Covid-19 has been comparable to the deaths that would normally be expected from suicide, and higher than those caused by alcohol (The figures are not direct comparisons from this year, which are not yet available for all causes of death)
The data showed that homeless men dying of coronavirus were significantly younger, on average, than men in the general population who were dying from the same disease – 58 years old compared to 79
‘Every one of these deaths is a tragedy,’ said Jon Sparkes, chief executive of the homelessness charity Crisis.
‘Behind these figures are individuals, each with families, hopes and dreams.
‘When the outbreak started, it was a stark reminder of the risk people who are homeless face from the virus – with no access to a place to self-isolate nor, in some cases, basic sanitation.
‘The situation could have been much worse had the government, local councils and charities not worked to quickly move many people sleeping rough and in night shelters into hotels, providing safe, emergency accommodation. This undoubtedly saved lives.’
The data, compared to average causes of death for homeless people for three month periods, showed Covid-19 would kill 16 people per quarter if it continued.
This was higher than the average 15.8 caused by suicide or the 13.2 ‘alcohol-specific deaths’. It was lower, however, than drug poisoning which causes 40.6.
In March as the country went into lockdown the Government urged local councils to take homeless people off the streets and into temporary accommodation to protect them.
As a result, thousands of people were put up in empty homes, B&Bs and hotels to prevent them catching and spreading the coronavirus.
Rough sleepers in particular were at ‘disproportionate’ risk of the virus because they lacked basic hygiene facilities, such as the provisions to wash their hands, and were unable to self-isolate if they became ill or to stock up on food for long periods.
The ONS defines homeless people not only as those who live on the streets but anyone of ‘no fixed abode’ or living in a shelter.
Its data is preliminary and will likely be updated in future when more detailed analysis of deaths has been completed, the report said.
Some 90 per cent of homeless deaths have to be investigated by a coroner, the ONS said, which can delay the process of recording it by ‘several months’.
It added: ‘During the pandemic, some homeless people were sheltered in hotels and bed and breakfasts, as part of the respective policy initiatives of the UK government and Welsh Government.
‘For both England and Wales, the addresses of these establishments were included in the search method, in the same way as for known homeless shelters.
‘Some accommodation types, such as private rented and student accommodation, are not included.’
Homeless people are at a greater risk of serious illness because many of them already have health problems, according to Crisis – some 78 per cent of homeless people report physical health issues, compared to 37 per cent in general population.
And they are also less likely to access medical services, often using A&E as the first port of call if they have health issues, charities say.
Delaying or avoiding medical treatment makes people less able to recover from infections or long-standing illness, and may raise their risk of dying young.
Crisis’s Mr Sparkes added: ‘We must now build on this [support from councils].
‘We need emergency homelessness legislation to guarantee everyone experiencing homelessness has the security of a safe and settled home.
‘Without this, people risk being forced back on our streets or into crowded shelters, with the danger posed by the virus still very real.’