Tauranga Citizens Advice Bureau says the organisation is 'extremely concerned” by the lack of emergency housing in Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty.

Manager Kim Saunders says when people come to them in need of emergency accommodation, more often than not the organisation struggles to find anywhere for them to stay.

Photo: File.

'It is distressing not to be able to help people, especially families with children, and put a roof over their head for the night.”

And the worst thing is, it this is happening more and more often Kim says.

'Each year we are getting more people coming to us in need of emergency accommodation and there are so few options we can offer them.”

Within the region over the past two financial years, statistics show enquiries for emergency housing has more than doubled.

'We have all but no emergency housing available in Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty and a frustrating amount of clients presenting saying Work and Income have sent them to us.

'If we are lucky, we might be able to find people a night or two at a camping ground, but that doesn't solve the problem.”

The manager says what Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty need are places people can stay in for long enough to get back on their feet and settled into permanent housing.

The Citizens Advice Bureau has just issued a report on clients in need of emergency accommodation nationally.

This paints a 'disturbing” picture of people living in extremely precarious, insecure and unhealthy housing situations

Kim says Citizens Advice will be taking the report to a meeting organised by Tauranga City Council on December 9.