MORE than 70 households in South Lakeland were assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness last winter, figures show.

Between October and December last year, 53 families or individuals in South Lakeland were identified as homeless by the council, down from 57 the year before, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government figures show.

A further 24 households were eligible for council help as they were at risk of homelessness in winter 2020 - up from 17 in 2019.

There were 17 households in temporary accommodation in South Lakeland on December 31 2020 – four more than the year before and including 10 children – while the council did not assess anyone as a rough sleeper in that time.

The latest figures show that 33,990 households were identified as homeless last winter across England, a rise of 0.5 per cent compared to the same period in 2019.