Around 20 households were identified as homeless last summer despite being employed and in actual work, figures reveal.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government data shows 78 households were entitled to help from Watford Borough Council between July and September – 42 of which were assessed as homeless and 36 at risk of becoming so.

Of these, 10 had at least one person working full-time and eight part-time.

There was also one family where the main applicant was a student, or in training, and eight where they were seeking work.

Between July and September 2018, the last time these figures were published for this period, there were 66 households in need of help – 22 of which were working.

Watford Borough Council has been hard at work to try and eradicate homelessness during the Covid-19 pandemic.

For several days in January, there were no known rough sleepers recorded in Watford’s streets, something that had not happened in the town “for a generation”.

Meanwhile homeless charity One YMCA has secured a £4million investment to redevelop Charter House and introduce 34 new rooms for rough sleepers.

In Watford, 35 households owed help by the council between July and September had at least one member registered as unemployed, not seeking work, or at home.

A further eight could not work due to illness or disability and two were retired.

Speaking on the national rise of homeless workers, charity Crisis said it is “unacceptable” that there are thousands of people in paid work but without a home in England.

Across England, almost a quarter (15,590) of households assessed as homeless had full-time or part-time jobs between July and September last year.

Crisis said the situation could have been even worse without the uplift in Universal Credit and the furlough scheme, but that people will continue to struggle when restrictions are eased.

Jon Sparkes, chief executive of Crisis, said: “It’s unacceptable that thousands of people in England cannot afford a place to live, despite being in work.

“We are calling on the Westminster Government to provide emergency grants and loans to renters who have been forced into arrears by the pandemic and extend the benefit cap grace period until the end of the pandemic.

"But we must not lose sight of the fact that homelessness amongst workers has existed long before Covid-19 and to end it once and for all, we need long-term investment in affordable housing.”

A spokeswoman for the Government said it had provided "unprecedented support" for renters during the pandemic through the evictions ban and welfare support.

She added that over £700 million was being provided to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping this year, and over £12 billion in affordable housing over five years.