Despite the lack of comprehensive data on the full extent of homelessness and precarious housing in Europe, we know that many infants and young children experience overcrowding, housing deprivation and hidden homelessness, and are forced to live in temporary accommodation which is unsuitable for them and their families.
Our recommendations for EU governments and institutions:
- Ensure access to affordable and quality housing for all households with infants and young children, through a range of measures including limits on rent increases, access to sufficient housing benefits, support with energy costs, protections against evictions and increased availability of social housing
- Improve national data collection on homelessness and housing deprivation among families with young children, to inform and improve policy-making
- Address poverty and social exclusion as underlying causes of homelessness and housing deprivation, and invest in adequate social protection systems that prevent family poverty and provide an effective safety net for those in vulnerable situations
- Ensure that the Child Guarantee triggers the necessary reforms that support families and young children in need to access adequate and secure housing, especially those living in vulnerable and
precarious situations - Ensure that housing policy takes into account the specific needs of women and children, in pregnancy, infancy and childhood, including those escaping domestic violence
