Opportunity Starts at Home (OSAH) roundtable member SchoolHouse Connection released a report last month examining infant and toddler homelessness in the U.S during 2021-2022. The data used in the report were generated by the first state-by-state data collection effort focused on infant and toddler homelessness and provide the most comprehensive look at homelessness among the nation’s youngest children to date.
The report analyzes federal and other available data to estimate the number of infants and toddlers who experienced homelessness in 2021 at the national and state levels and to identify patterns among enrollment in early childhood development programs in the 2021-2022 program year. The analysis reveals that approximately 2.5% of children of ages three or less in the U.S. experienced homelessness during the 2021-2022 program year; that children make up 40% of all individuals facing eviction; and that the rate of eviction for families with children is two times that of families without children. Significant numbers of infants and toddlers experience other housing problems, according to the report, with 2.9% of babies and toddlers having moved three or more times since birth and 15.2% living in crowded housing. The report also provides policy recommendations for state and federal actions to improve access to critical housing supports, including increasing safe, affordable housing options; providing emergency rental assistance and housing stability services; and targeting housing choice vouchers and mobility services to families with young children.
The report builds on an existing body of research that demonstrates the harmful effects of homelessness on children, particularly infants and toddlers in critical stages of physical and cognitive development. Read OSAH’s latest fact sheet, Child Anti-Poverty Advocates are Housing Advocates, for more information about the impact of homelessness on child well-being and family stability.
Read the report here.