Jersey charity fears winter homelessness crisis following pandemic

Homelessness
The Shelter Trust says demand more than doubled during the height of the pandemic as seasonal workers were laid off. Credit: PA Images

Jersey's homeless shelter is predicting a "perfect storm" of problems this winter that could lead to hundreds of people without a roof over their heads. The Shelter Trust says demand more than doubled during the height of the pandemic as seasonal workers were laid off. It is warning there could be worse to come as government support for wages and jobs is phased out.

The shelter supports 90-100 at any one time during normal times and helped 210 people at the height of the coronavirus crisis.

The charity fears that these numbers could rise again going into the winter months.

The charity currently needs nine shelters to manage the scale of homelessness in Jersey. This is a rise from six shelters before the pandemic.

The politician in charge of housing, meanwhile, says a review into the causes of homelessness is underway.


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