DOZENS of people were homeless in Maldon on any given night in 2022, new estimates suggest.

Shelter, a leading homelessness charity, has used government statistics, Freedom of Information requests and data from the membership charity Homeless Link to work out how many people are without a home in England.

It estimates 62 people were homeless in Maldon on any given night in 2022 – including 35 children.

This was equivalent to one in every 1,068 people in the area, the charity said.

All the homeless people in Maldon were in temporary accommodation.

The figures do not include the various forms of hidden or unofficial homelessness, such as sofa surfing or overcrowded homes.

Shelter chief executive Polly Neate said they were expecting a rise in homelessness in 2023.

“A cold doorway or a grotty hostel room is not a home, but this is reality for too many people today,” she said.

“With private rents and living costs continuing to soar, thousands of people are not just facing a winter of worry, they are at risk of losing the roof over their head.”

A government spokeswoman said it had given £366million to local authorities this year to help prevent evictions and provide temporary housing.