| The City of Boston conducts an annual census of the homeless. Undertaken each December in Boston’s homeless shelters, it documents the need for more permanent and temporary housing solutions. According to Boston’s Emergency Shelter Commission, this may underestimate the actual number of homeless people in the city, since cold temperatures and lowered shelter capacity can drive people to seek shelter in places where they cannot be located or counted.
How are we doing?
According to the City’s annual census, the homeless population in Boston is about 6,000. This population decreased by 7% between 2003 and 2004, but is still one-third higher than in 1992. About 20% percent of the homeless in Boston are children, a situation that has not changed markedly since the annual census began. Just under one quarter of the homeless are women, also a statistic that has remained stable. About 1,500 homeless families are receiving emergency assistance at any point in time in the state — nearly 50% above the capacity of available shelters (according to the One Family Campaign’s Ending Family Homelessness report, which cites Department of Transitional Assistance statistics).
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Click image to enlarge chart "Count of the homeless, City of Boston: 1992-2004"
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