With the release of the 8th Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe, Fondation Abbé Pierre and FEANTSA reveal new estimates on the number of people living in homelessness in Europe and shine a light on unfit housing.
Read the press release here [EN]
(Recording available soon)
A Worrying Increase in Homelessness
In 2022, at least 895,000 persons were still experiencing homelessness in Europe:
- In Germany, which executed its first-ever national census, 84,500 people were recorded as living on the street or in hidden homelessness.
- In Spain, 28,552 people were without a home, a 24% increase from 2012.
- In Ireland, between the 24th and 30th of December 2022, 11,632 persons stayed in an emergency shelter; the number of people using such services increased by 40% in the last two years.
Policy responses to the rising number of people without a home in European countries remain insufficient. While emergency management methods have been stretched to their limits, it's now imperative to implement the new policies announced in the wake of the pandemic and establish a sustainable response to homelessness.
The European Union demonstrates an awareness of the worsening situation by including homelessness on the political agenda, and countries such as Finland, Denmark, and Austria even serve as exemplars with a slight decrease in the number of people in homelessness. Initiatives launched by the European Platform on Combatting Homelessness (EPOCH) represent positive developments, but efforts by the Member States need to be increased.
Unfit Housing in Europe: A Public Health Concern
In the study conducted among FEANTSA members and their partners, Fondation Abbé Pierre and FEANTSA outline the state of unfit housing, still largely invisible and difficult to measure.
In Europe, 19.2 million people live in unfit housing according to Eurostat.
While the average quality of housing has been steadily improving over the last twenty years, unfit, poorly insulated, non-functional and cramped housing remains a reality for millions of Europeans. According to the World Health Organization, inadequate housing is responsible for more than 100,000 deaths each year in Europe.
Faced with these facts, it is necessary for governments and EU institutions to recognise unfit housing as a public health issue. The EU’s housing ‘Renovation Wave’ may be an opportunity to eradicate this phenomenon in Europe if sufficient support and funding is offered to the most vulnerable.
Press contacts:
Français :
Angèle Roblot et Raphaëlle Graffion - Fondation Abbé Pierre
media@fondation-abbe-pierre.fr / +336 23 25 93 79
English:
Rocio Urias - FEANTSA
rocio.urias@feantsa.org / +34 674 79 01 01
FEANTSA is the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless. We are the only European NGO focusing exclusively on the fight against homelessness. Our goal is an end to homelessness in Europe. is the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless. We are the only European NGO focusing exclusively on the fight against homelessness. FEANTSA works with over 130 members across 29 countries including 22 EU Member States. FEANTSA’s members are predominantly NGOs working with homeless people, but also include other stakeholders involved in the fight against homelessness such as public authorities, social housing providers, foundations, and research entities.
Foundation Abbé Pierre is present all over France and works on daily basis to enable all disadvantaged people to have access to decent housing and a dignified life. Its headquarters are located in Paris, and it has 9 territorial agencies (Ile-de-France, Nord Pas-de-Calais, Brittany, Rhône-Alpes, Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur, Réunion Island, Languedoc Roussillon, Alsace Lorraine, Aquitaine).
