When Shantel Morris moved into "cramped" and "unclean" temporary accommodation in 2022 with her then-eight-year-old son, she began to notice a worrying change in his behaviour.

He had shown signs of autism before the family became homeless, including episodes of head-banging. But after spending a year sharing a room in a former care home, Morris says his condition deteriorated.

The stress and conditions of the accommodation appeared to exacerbate his symptoms, while obsessive compulsive behaviours that had never surfaced before began to emerge.

"He was scared to sleep, scared to go to the toilet - it affected his education and health."

Shantel described their accommodation as a "bit like a glorified prison with banging doors and very small rooms", adding that the biggest challenge was the "sensory issues, all the noises and the lack of space".

The 45-year-old has since been rehomed and her experience has inspired her to help families like hers.

"For non-verbal autistic children, it's dangerous because it's not easy to contain a child in that environment."

Her experience reflects research carried out by King's College London into the impact of temporary accommodation on neurodivergent children.

"In policy they often talk about child homelessness... being hidden homelessness. Neurodivergent children are the 'hidden of the hidden'," said co-author Dr Katherine Brickell.

"They are ignored both in the child poverty strategy and also in the new homeless strategy. There are thousands who are not recognised in those policies."

She has co-written a report on the experiences of neurodivergent children in temporary accommodation, undertaken through the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Households in Temporary Accommodation.

Shantel and her son were made homeless after receiving a Section 21 eviction notice from the landlord they had rented from for several years.

Eventually, after her solicitor negotiated with the council, the family were offered accommodation in south-east London and soon after she received an official autism diagnosis for her son.

Shantel later set up her community interest company, Morris Mission, to help homeless neurodiverse children who might otherwise "fall through the gaps".

She believes children's services and housing departments should work together more effectively to provide "extra support" for homeless neurodivergent children.

The BBC has spoken to several families who are living, or have lived, in temporary accommodation with children who are neurodivergent or awaiting diagnoses.

Many described problems including lack of space, sensory overload and difficulties caused by moving between boroughs, which they say disrupts access to special educational needs (SEND) support.

Florence Payne has lived in temporary accommodation with her daughter since she was six months old, moving twice in recent years and dealing with issues including rats and overcrowding.

She believes living in temporary accommodation has contributed to her daughter becoming more withdrawn and delayed in her speech and social development.

Her daughter is receiving specialist speech and language support, and Florence believes the instability and cramped conditions have affected her development.

"It's not nice for her to keep getting up and moving," she said. "When we're at my mum's house she's happy and excited, but when we get back here she just wants to sit and watch TV".

Florence said her daughter was currently awaiting an autism assessment from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).

Kieron, a single father living in temporary accommodation with his two children, shares a small room with his eight-year-old autistic son.

He described the conditions as stifling for his son, who is prone to "meltdowns".

While he said council officers had been helpful, he felt there was no specialist support tailored to his son's educational needs.

He also said the council had been inflexible around housing viewings, which meant he sometimes had to bring his son with him.

On one occasion, he said that due to stress his son urinated in front of prospective landlords during a viewing, which he believed was the reason why they were not accepted.

A single mother who wanted to remain anonymous told the BBC that living in temporary accommodation with her neurodiverse teenage son "impacted him massively".

"It affected his sleep as he is noise sensitive, so some nights I slept on the toilet floor so I didn't keep him awake.

"It affected his mood, mental health, his studying to the point that our local CAMHS advised that it would be in his best interest to stay with a family member an hour away.

"This meant earlier starts and people having to transport him back to our borough on their way to and from work."

The latest report on the intersection of housing and neurodiversity notes that there is no official data on how many neurodivergent children live in temporary accommodation, creating what it calls a "significant policy blind spot".

But based on available indicators, the authors estimate between 25,000 and 120,000 neurodivergent children in England may be affected, out of 172,420 children in temporary accommodation nationally.

Dame Siobhain McDonagh is the chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Households in Temporary Accommodation.

The MP said conditions including repeated moves, short notice periods and unsuitable housing far from established support networks "are not only degrading and inhumane, but risk inflicting lifelong harm on children's physical and mental health".

While welcoming steps set out in the government's National Plan to Ending Homelessness, she said "significant gaps remain", particularly in ensuring that neurodivergent children are explicitly recognised and protected.

The report makes a number of recommendations, including incorporating the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into UK law, improving data collection to record special educational needs status, and ensuring continuity of essential services when families move.

Co-author Dr Rosalie Warnock says temporary accommodation is "awful for every child but there are particular challenges for neurodivergent children".

She added that these issues included struggling to access education if they moved between boroughs, sensory overload with a lack of regulation and problems with sleeping, which "becomes a whole-family issue".

Warnock has said it is also harder for children to get diagnoses if they fall off waiting lists.

It is an issue increasingly on the radar of councils, including Hackney. At a scrutiny commission in February, SEND campaign group Housing Inclusion Hackney called for a more joined-up approach between education and housing services.

"One of the biggest challenges is that local authorities are operating under tight budgets," said Laura-Louise Fairley, deputy cabinet member for SEND support.

"Too often, children's services and housing operate separately and aren't communicating effectively. But these are children with rights and needs, and we must find creative, child-centred solutions."

Fairley said incomplete data was also an issue, as many children were still awaiting diagnoses.

"Medical professionals have raised concerns about unsuitable accommodation, but these have sometimes been dismissed," she said. "Data is essential, but it doesn't tell the full story."

She added Hackney Council was working to improve training for housing officers.

The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act will introduce a new duty on local housing authorities to notify educational institutions, GP practices and health visiting services when a child is placed in temporary accommodation.

A government spokesperson said: "Children with special educational needs deserve the very best support, and councils must not place them in unsuitable temporary accommodation or they could face court action.

"We're bringing in new laws requiring them to tell schools and GP practices when a child is placed in a temporary home, so no child misses out on the help they need."

A spokesperson for London Councils, the body that represents the capital's 32 boroughs and the City of London Corporation: said:

"London is the epicentre of the national housing crisis with skyrocketing levels of homelessness – one in 50 Londoners is homeless and living in temporary accommodation.

"Children with special educational needs and disabilities can be among the most vulnerable when families are living in temporary accommodation. Boroughs take their responsibilities extremely seriously and work hard to ensure that no family is overlooked, while the sheer scale of the homelessness crisis continues to place enormous pressure on the support councils can provide.

"We are determined to work with the government and other partners to increase the supply of affordable housing and bring the housing crisis under control."

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