Out In The Cold: Homeless at Christmas

18 DEC 2017
Hundreds of thousands of people in Britain face Christmas on the streets or in temporary accommodation.

In our new series, Out In The Cold, Channel 4 News explores what life is like for those without a home.

128,000 children in the UK are living in temporary accommodation and without a permanent home, according to the housing charity Shelter.

Struggling to settle in unfamiliar surroundings, some families have been recording video diaries about how they are forced to live.

As Britain freezes, so too do the thousands sleeping rough in towns and cities across the country.

Whilst most of us worry about staying warm, for those on the streets the priority is staying alive in sub-zero temperatures. And the problem is getting worse.

More than 4,000 people sleep rough every night in England – a figure which has more than doubled since 2010.

Britain’s second city, Birmingham, is facing a twin crisis: high levels of homelessness and drug use.

The city’s mayor aims ti get people back into housing before tackling their drug problem, while outreach workers are trying to create safe areas where users can inject, which have already proved a huge success in Europe.