Britain: an acute social divide in housing

The report was compiled from 6,940 face-to-face interviews with families that included 12,727 children as well as 3,477 self-completion questionnaires by children aged 11 to 15. It shows what life is like on the wrong side of the housing divide in Britain today.

Its key points are stark reading, particularly at a time when this Labour government is in the midst of a programme with the ostensible aim of pulling children out of poverty.

There are 1.6 million children in Britain currently living in bad housing. This is the equivalent of one in seven children, or 14 percent. Children living in bad housing, as against those living in adequate housing, are:

* twice as likely to have been excluded from school,

* almost twice as likely to suffer from poor health,

* three times as likely to feel unhappy about their families,

* Almost twice as likely to suffer from bullying, and

* nearly twice as likely to leave school without any GCSEs (general school leaving qualification).

There are nearly 310,000 children living in Britain today in bad housing who suffer a long-term illness or disability.

In a single year, more than 57,000 children who live in bad housing are excluded from school.

Children living in temporary accommodation will often have to change schools several times in a year. The impact of this on the educational and emotional well-being of the child is psychologically and emotionally disruptive and upsetting. As a result, many children are not able to form stable and secure relationships with adults and their peers.

In an earlier report by Shelter, “Living in Limbo,” parents reported that children missed on average 55 school days (equivalent to a quarter of a school year) due to the disruption of moving. They often have to move far away from the schools they have been attending, and it can be impractical for the child to remain at the same school without having to travel long distances to and from school.

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http://wsws.org/articles/2006/dec2006/hous-d13.shtml