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Unless another winter “truce” is imposed, campaign group Generation Rent says there will be 83 evictions from rented and mortgaged homes for every 15-hour bailiff shift over the Christmas period.

This includes 28 renter households being evicted using the Section 21 process, also known as the no-fault process.

In these cases a landlord does not need a reason for eviction and tenants have just two months notice to find another property with no right to appeal.

During the pandemic the Government imposed a ban on evictions to keep roofs over people’s heads. However, since this was lifted in July, tenants have been losing their homes at a similar rate to before Covid.

The Government promised to abolish Section 21 evictions in April 2019. In May this year, it promised aWhite Paper to set out the full details of the reforms, but said in October that it would not now be published until next year.

Generation Rent is calling for the reinstatement of the winter truce which was used last Christmas, to prevent evictions at a time when rising cases of Covid were putting additional strain on public services.

Director Alicia Kennedy said: “No evictions should take place during winter, given the risk to vulnerable people of being made homeless in freezing conditions.”

She added: “Last winter’s truce brought England and Wales into line with other European countries and this should be put in place every year.”

Rachel Walker, 35, who is blind and suffering from a severe kidney disease, is among those facing an uncertain Christmas waiting for a no-fault eviction notice to be enforced. A Type 1 diabetic, she lives with partner Scott, 45, and their five children in a rented house on Canvey Island, Essex.

She said she is having to choose between heating her home and feeding her children as she struggles with rising living costs.

She added: “Considering my health issues I should rely on a good diet but I go days without eating a meal to make sure the children eat.”

Meanwhile, a study carried out by the charity Shelter showed that more than 274,000 people are now homeless in England, including 126,000 children.

Of these, 2,700 people sleep rough on any given night. Nearly 15,000 single people are in direct access hostels and more than 250,000 are in temporary accommodation. Most are families.

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The number of people living in temporary accommodation is the highest for 14 years.

Last week the Sunday Express launched our Let’s Save Their Homes crusade in collaboration with The Big Issue, after its founder Lord John Bird warned Britain could see a tsunami of homelessness this Christmas.

He said 220,000 people are facing eviction in the wake of Covid, as £360million in rent arrears was accumulated during the pandemic. Such a “perfect storm” would cost the taxpayer £2billion to fund temporary accommodation for families.

To halt this, The Big Issue and the Sunday Express are calling on the Government to take action on the £360million in rent arrears – either through loans, grants or payments – and provide additional support for those unable to pay rent or mortgages due to Covid. The campaign is also calling for an end to no-fault evictions and for the Government to offer jobs and training.

More than two-thirds of homeless people in temporary accommodation are in London.

Luton has the next highest rate, followed by Brighton.

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Perfect storm of costs, cuts and debt deepen crisis, says Polly Neate

Homelessness is already appallingly widespread – 274,000 people will be homeless this Christmas in England.

Most will be families spending Christmas in grim temporary accommodation with their children, often four people to a single room with no space to eat or play.

Some will be single people, enduring the wind and cold as they sleep on freezing streets or in shop doorways. And it could all get much worse.

After a hard year, this winter is going to be even more difficult for many.

The cost of living is rising rapidly – the weekly food shop and electricity bills are getting more expensive.The £20 cut to Universal Credit has chipped away at incomes even further.

And all of the Covid protections like “Everyone In”and the eviction ban are gone.The pressure is piling up.

Our frontline advisers see the gauntlet of impossible choices people face.While doing everything they can to pay their rent, it’s then a decision about whether to eat that night or keep the heating on for an extra hour because the children are cold.

At the height of the crisis last year the Government rightly implemented an eviction ban but that went in the summer.

It also gave councils £65million to help clear Covid arrears for those in dire straits.This was again the right thing to do. But there is no way it will reach all of the people whose incomes have been badly affected. As it stands, it is inevitable we will see a rising tide of evictions in the months to come. Our emergency helpline is already feeling the effects.We receive 1,000 calls a day, the vast majority from people already homeless or close to it.

Too many will spend sleepless nights this Christmas worrying if this is the last one in their home.They can’t afford another rental and an eviction could tip them into homelessness.

This perfect storm of costs, cuts and debt could open the floodgates and make our already dire housing emergency worse.

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