Isle of Wight council has encouraged homeless people to buy tents after applications from young homeless people tripled in the past six months.
The council's new duties to house young people under the 2002 Homelessness Act have pushed up the applications from people aged 16-24. A shortage of social and rented housing on the island has exacerbated the problem.

The authority gave one 16-year-old girl £40 to buy a tent after she was thrown out of a hostel for abusive behaviour and rejected three other offers of accommodation, including an interview at a foyer.

Three other people have been given tents in similar circumstances.

The island has an annual affordable housing shortfall of 375 units and the 10th highest level of homelessness in the South-east. Martyn Pearl, the council's head of housing services said: "The island has seen much higher increases in house prices and owner-occupation than the mainland. People are finding it harder to get accommodation."

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    Housing Today