MPs are demanding action after new data linked 104 child deaths to England's temporary accommodation crisis. Here is what the data shows and what tenants in TA can do.
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In April 2026, MPs called on the government for faster action after new data linked the deaths of 104 children to conditions in temporary accommodation across England. If you are housed in temporary accommodation, you still have legal rights, but the route to enforce them is different from a normal tenancy. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman handles complaints, the Fitness for Human Habitation Act 2018 still applies, and council social services have specific duties where children are involved.
What the new data showed
The figure comes from the Child Mortality in Temporary Accommodation report, produced by the Shared Health Foundation and the all-party group of MPs for households in temporary accommodation. It found that 104 children died between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2025 with temporary accommodation recorded as a factor in their death, and that 76 of them were babies under one year old. The deaths were linked to conditions in temporary accommodation: mould, overcrowding, lack of heating, infestations, and unsuitable placements such as bed-and-breakfast rooms with no cooking facilities for families with young children.
MPs across parties have since pressed the government to:
- Reduce the time families spend in temporary accommodation. Some families have now been in "temporary" placements for more than five years.
- Stop placing children long-term in B&Bs and hostels. The law already requires this, but enforcement is patchy.
- Apply the Fitness for Human Habitation Act 2018 standards to temporary accommodation in the same way as it applies to permanent tenancies.
Why temporary accommodation tenants are in a legal gap
Temporary accommodation is provided under the council's homelessness duty (Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996). The arrangement is not a normal tenancy. The occupant is usually a licensee or has a non-secure tenancy with limited rights.
That has practical consequences for disrepair:
- Awaab's Law applies to social tenants, not to all temporary-accommodation placements. Whether it applies depends on the type of placement and the landlord.
- Section 11 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 applies where there is a tenancy. Some TA placements are licences, where Section 11 does not directly apply.
- The Fitness for Human Habitation Act 2018 does apply to most temporary accommodation. This is the most reliable legal route for many TA residents.
- Complaints about temporary accommodation are handled by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO), which is the right route for these placements.
If you live in temporary accommodation, the LGSCO route is free and is specifically designed for complaints about how the council has handled your placement, including the suitability and condition of the property.
What you can do today
If you are in temporary accommodation and the conditions are affecting your or your children's health, take these steps.
- Get the housing officer's email in writing. Often the only contact you have is a phone line. Ask for the named officer's email and copy every complaint to them.
- Report the issue to the property manager or landlord of the actual building. Even where the council has placed you, the landlord still has fitness duties.
- Tell environmental health. Your local council's Environmental Health Team can inspect for statutory nuisance under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This route works whether or not you are a tenant. See our explainer on Section 82 of the Environmental Protection Act.
- Contact your doctor if anyone in the household has been ill. Get the connection between the housing conditions and the illness documented.
- Complain to the LGSCO. Their website is lgo.org.uk and the service is free.
- Speak to a children's centre, school, or health visitor if children are in the household. They can sometimes escalate to social services, which has its own legal duties under the Children Act 1989 where housing conditions are harming a child.
Where Support for Tenants can and can't help
Temporary accommodation cases sit on the edge of what a Claims Management Company can usefully do. Where you have a tenancy (rather than a licence) and the disrepair has been ongoing, we can refer to a panel solicitor. Where the placement is a B&B, a hostel, or a clear licence, the case is usually better handled by the LGSCO or Shelter England (0808 800 4444), and we will tell you that.
The honest position: most TA disrepair complaints will not become legal claims. But the conditions are unlawful, and the routes to challenge them work. Use them.
Free call: 0800 030 4669. Even if we cannot take the case, we will point you to the right free service.
Sources: Child Mortality in Temporary Accommodation, Shared Health Foundation and the APPG for Households in Temporary Accommodation; The Big Issue coverage.
Support For Tenants is a trading name of Cyntex Group Ltd, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority as a Claims Management Company. FRN 1020217. Registered in England and Wales.
Reviewed against current housing law for England and Wales as at 23 May 2026. Checked by our SRA-regulated panel solicitors. This is general information, not legal advice for your specific case. Any compensation figures or ranges shown are illustrative only and not guaranteed; every case is different.
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