Number of people living on our streets has doubled

Credit: ITV

People sleeping rough in our region have no respite from the freezing temperatures

The last few nights in the UK will have been particularly dangerous for anyone who is homeless, especially in our region where Oxfordshire saw temperatures down to minus 9 degrees.

Government figures show last year the number of people living on our streets has doubled.

Brighton and Hove had the highest number of rough sleepers outside London with 144 - up 66 on the year before

Portsmouth were 37 - an increase of 22 .

In Oxford, where a homelessness charter was recently signed to tackle the problem, there are around 38 rough sleepers, up five from last year.

While in Reading, there were 26, up six on the previous year.

Figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government show:

However, charities think this figure for 2016 is double the amount.

For more information, help and assistance, you can visit these websites:

www.shelter.org.uk

www.crisis.org.uk

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