THOUSANDS of North-East families are being torn apart by overcrowding in the home, new research has revealed.

Homeless charity Shelter warned last night that thousands more people will suffer unless urgent action is taken to tackle the region's overcrowding crisis.

The organisation's Crowded House report has revealed that more than 31,000 children in the North-East are living in overcrowding conditions.

The charity is calling for greater investment in affordable, family-sized homes to combat the problem.

It said it had evidence that about 11,800 families suffered overcrowding problems in the region which had detrimental effect on family life. In Yorkshire and Humber the figure was 32,400.

Children living in social and private rented housing, single-parent families and black and ethnic minority households were more likely to endure the conditions.

Problems encountered by families included the spread of illness, unsettled sleep patterns, lack of privacy, limited space for children to do home-work and breakdown in relationships between parents, siblings and children.

Director of Shelter Adam Sampson said: "Young people and children need room to grow and their health, education and wellbeing are being damaged by the miserable and overcrowded conditions they are forced to live in.

"A lack of space and privacy is destroying their relationships with their parents and brothers and sisters.

"Overcrowding must be tackled to prevent future generations of children being permanently scarred."

The charity found that despite one child in every ten in England living in overcrowded conditions only 4,934 affordable family-sized homes were built nationally last year.

It said the current rates of building were nowhere near enough to tackle the problem and rising house prices had also affected the situation.

Research was obtained from Census and Office of the Deputy Prime Minister figures.

Shelter has launched a National Housing Investigation aimed at establishing the real extent of the problem as part of its Million Children campaign, an initiative to get the Government to end bad housing for the next generation of children. It will hold a series of days where homeless and badly housed people and frontline workers will give evidence to a panel of experts.

Anyone with housing problems can contact the Shelter free national advice line on 0808 800 4444.