More than 1,600 people are now homeless across Bristol, according to research by charity Shelter.
The new figures released today show that in Bristol 1,609 people are now homeless in the city.
The data adds up the number of people who are living in temporary accommodation or sleeping rough.
The number of people registered homeless in temporary accommodation run by Bristol City Council currently stands at 1,522.
Bristol has 82 rough sleepers and 5 people who are in other circumstances.
Penny Walster is Shelter's Bristol Hub Manager, she said: “Homelessness blights lives and leaves a lasting imprint of trauma, and yet more than 7,000 people in the South West are without a home this Christmas. And many are only days away from joining them.
“As well as those facing serious ill-health or even death sleeping rough on our streets this winter, there are too many families trapped in grotty emergency B&Bs, with no space for children to sit and eat, let alone play. This is the grim truth our new government must confront and do something radical to change.
“Until the government acts to stem this crisis, the work of our frontline advisers remains critical. With the public’s support we will do everything we can to help people find a safe and stable place to live – no matter how long it takes.”
The charity's report, 'This is England: a picture of homelessness in 2019', identifies areas across the South West where homelessness is most acute.
The number of people recorded homeless across the entire South West region has now reached 7,127, a figure which shows the picture of homelessness in the region has not improved since 2016, when Shelter published its landmark annual report.
Although Shelter provides the most comprehensive overview of homelessness across the UK, it's widely known that a lot of homelessness goes undocumented, including sofa surfing and some rough sleeping.
This means the true level of homelessness across the Bristol, the South West and the UK is higher than today's count, claims the charity.
Shelter warns that unless the new Conservative government takes urgent action to address the lack of social housing across the UK, the situation is likely to get a lot worse.
Alongside Shelter's bid for more social housing, the charity is calling on the public to support its frontline workers as they grapple with huge demand during the Christmas period.
Over the last year, a call was made to Shelter's emergency hotline every 44 seconds and its free webchat service was used almost 26,000 times.
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