The count of homeless children has reached an all-time high in France as a UNICEF survey reported 1,990 children without a proper place to stay at the end of the summer
season. The ongoing closures of emergency shelters are raising concerns about the well-being of these vulnerable children.
"The previous administration's commitment to achieving 'zero homeless children' has unfortunately not been upheld. The situation has worsened, which is utterly unacceptable," voiced Adeline Hazan, the President of UNICEF France. A distressing figure emerged from the fifth survey assessing the state of children living on the streets: nearly 2,000 children were without a place to call home across the country on the night of August 21-22. Families managed to contact the emergency helpline (115), shedding light on the grim reality. The survey, released on Wednesday, August 30, was conducted jointly by the United Nations agency and France's Fédération des Acteurs de la Solidarité (FAS), a coalition of around 900 social welfare organizations.
Regrettably, the numbers continue to surge. Presently, around 1,990 children find themselves without proper shelter. This is more than twice the count observed on January 31, 2022, marking a 17% increase from August 22, 2022, and, most alarmingly, a 56% surge from January 30, 2023. On that date, the French government had responded to the crisis by unprecedentedly expanding the number of emergency accommodations to 205,000. Simultaneously, the number of single homeless women with children has seen a substantial 46% rise over a year. Pascal Brice, the President of FAS, noted, "It's important to acknowledge that these estimates are conservative, as they do not encompass unaccompanied minors or families unable to reach out to 115, or those who've grown disheartened by repeated refusals."
The situation on the ground is even bleaker. In Lyon, the association "Jamais Sans Toit" (Never Without a Roof), comprised of teachers and parents advocating for homeless children, faces an unprecedented scenario since its inception in 2014. Raphaël Vulliez, a founding member of the association, explained, "Families sheltered during winter are now left without systematic assistance in the spring, despite legal provisions for continuous emergency housing. For instance, on August 7, 80 families, some with children as young as three years old, were returned to the streets. A total of 395 homeless children were tallied in Lyon, a threefold increase from the previous summer. This includes infants, families with severe health concerns, and expectant mothers." Photo by Iudexvivorum, Wikimedia commons.