HOMELESSNESS groups expressed outrage after it was revealed yesterday that one homeless person dies every 19 hours on average – while more than a quarter of a million homes in Britain stand empty.

At least 235 people “affected by homelessness” died in the last six months, the Museum of Homelessness (MoH) has found.

They were aged between 16 and 104 and may have been in emergency or temporary accommodation or sleeping rough, the social justice group said.

MoH also warned that the true figures could be “significantly higher” and called for official bodies to improve recording of homeless deaths as the current data is inconsistent.

MoH co-founder Jessica Turtle also blamed austerity.

“What we can see from the research is that cuts to services have definitely had a huge impact,” she said.

“They are having a direct impact on vulnerable people’s lives.

“People aren’t able to access the support they need.”

She said the group had received “positive responses” from some councils, including Birmingham, Oxford, and Islington in north London, but “we need to see more across the UK.”

Matthew Downie, director of policy and external affairs at fellow homelessness charity Crisis, said: “It’s disgraceful that, in a society like ours, hundreds of vulnerable people across the country have died without the dignity of a secure home.

“What makes this even worse is that a lot of these fatalities are happening not while people are rough sleeping, as you may expect, but when they are in temporary accommodation that is simply not fit for purpose.”

Mr Downie called on the government to ensure that each death is properly investigated and that local authorities have the right funding to do so.

The government must address issues forcing people into homelessness in the first place, including quick rehousing into a safe homes and a lack of affordable housing, he added.

Labour’s shadow housing secretary John Healey said: “The scale of this crisis shames the government. After nine years of failure on housing, falling homelessness under Labour has turned into rising homelessness under the Conservatives.

“Labour will end rough sleeping and build the affordable homes our country desperately needs.”

Coinciding with MoH's analysis, insurance firm Admiral found that one out of every 100 homes across Britain have been vacant for more than six months, leaving property worth more than £20 billion sitting idle.

England has the highest total at 216,186, while the City of Edinburgh is the council with the most empty homes at 5,332.

More than 7,000 homes have stood empty in Cornwall for over 10 years.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said it was committed to ensuring that everyone has a safe place to live.