Warwick District Council's spend on tackling homelessness is up by "about 500 per cent" amid a surge in cases. 

The estimate came as part of a warning from the district's chief executive Chris Elliott during a recent meeting of Warwickshire's health and wellbeing board – a panel of county, district and borough councillors, council and NHS staff and patient bodies.

Research published by Crisis, a national charity that focuses on ending homelessness, in August 2023 said that 85 per cent of councils were facing an increase in the volume of people declaring themselves homeless.

In addition, they said 88 per cent of councils had reported an increase in requests for support from those evicted from the private rented sector, while 93 per cent anticipate a further increase over the coming year. 

Mr Elliott was providing a general overview on his authority's work related to health and wellbeing matters when he acknowledged homelessness as a particular challenge. 

His remarks followed updates from NHS partners connected to hospitals that are reporting surges in demand for emergency care, with some experiencing "higher levels of demand than the winter". 

"One of the downsides – and I think a number of people know this, it is across all the districts – is the rise in homelessness and people being held in temporary accommodation," he said.

"It is not a good position for those families to be health wise. That is a warning signal in terms of what district councils are dealing with and, of course, there is a cost pressure that goes with that. 

"For ours as an example, it has gone up about 500 per cent in terms of costs, so there is a significant issue, and I don't think we are out of kilter, we are not extraordinary. That will then have implications down the road.

"When you are talking about flow (through NHS departments), the best place to stop it is right at the very start."