Meg backs Shelter campaign to end bad housing

Meg Hillier has today backed homelessness charity Shelter by signing up to a housing pledge to campaign for new affordable homes in Hackney South and Shoreditch Constituency.

She made the Housing Pledge after Shelter revealed that over 410,000 children in the London Region are suffering in bad housing. Meg is also calling on local people to sign up to the campaign at the Shelter website.

Shelter is calling on election candidates to make a pledge to campaign for new affordable homes if they are elected.

Meg said: ‘I am pleased to add my support to Shelter’s Million Children Campaign, and if I am elected, I pledge to campaign
for the extra investment in new affordable homes needed to end bad housing for children in Hackney South and Shoreditch.’

Welcoming her support for the campaign, Director of Shelter, Adam Sampson, said: ‘Housing is fundamental in shaping a child’s
life and future prospects. It is time for politicians to show a real
commitment to improving the life chances of the million children
trapped in bad housing. And so we are delighted that Meg has made Shelter’s housing pledge to voters
in her constituency.’

Shelter’s Million Children Campaign aims to persuade politicians to tackle Britain’s housing crisis. The charity’s recent report, Generation Squalor, reveals that over a million children are growing up homeless or trapped in cold, damp and overcrowded homes. These children are suffering from serious health problems and struggling in school as a result of bad housing.

Ends

For further information, please contact Ian Rathbone
07890 654 068 or e-mail ian.rathbone@tiscali.co.uk; For further information about the Million Children Campaign, please contact Shelter’s Media Team on 020 7505 2162.

Notes for Editors:

Shelter’s estimates of the number of children living in bad housing are based on official statistics of children who are
homeless, overcrowded or living in unfit housing.

Region
Estimated Number of Children Living in Bad Housing

North East
50,000

North West
150,000

Yorkshire & Humber
110,000

East Midlands
70,000

West Midlands
125,000

East of England
100,000

London
410,000

South East
140,000

South West
75,000

England Total
1,230,000