For the second day of Civil Society Media’s 12 Days of Christmas, we feature Shelter’s 100,000 homeless children campaign. Rate the campaign to win a hamper and a free place at one of our events.

Figures by the Department for Communities and Local Government show that the number of children in emergency accommodation has grown steadily over the last five years – from 76,500 in 2011, to 84,000 in 2012, 87,000 in 2013 and 96,000 in 2014.

This Christmas, Shelter claim the figure will reach 100,000.

Shelter says that many live in cramped bed and breakfast accommodation or unsuitable hostels – often without cooking facilities, squashed into a single room and sharing a bathroom with strangers.

The campaign paints a picture of children eating Christmas dinner in the family's one small room. Dinner will be cooked in a microwave, balanced on the family’s one chest of drawers and they will eat perched on the edge of the bed. They will spend the afternoon walking around in the cold with the hostel closed for cleaning.

The charity is seeking to raise awareness that having a place to sleep isn’t the same as having a home. Temporary accommodation can be unsafe with the risk of abuse and poor conditions affecting health, the campaign claims. The emotional fallout can lead to behavioural problems and self harm.