The Brussels homeless organisation Samusocial has already taken in 150 babies under a year old this year. Of those, 28 came directly from the maternity ward to the homeless shelter – coming down to just over two a month.
In recent years, Samusocial has taken in similar numbers of babies under a year old, De Standaard reports. Between June 2024 and May 2025, that number was 243. About a quarter of the roughly 1,100 beds in Samusocial's homeless shelters are always kept for minors.
At the same time, Samusocial – the capital's largest homeless organisation – is finding it increasingly difficult to meet the demand for beds and is having to turn away families with young children due to a lack of space.
Since September, the organisation has had to turn away 2,161 people due to a lack of space, representing 613 families. "In a welfare state, we simply cannot accept mothers with small children, and even babies, ending up on the streets," said Samusocial director Sarah de Liamchine.
