Campaigners warn of ‘ghost town’ effect at 11 Peak District holiday home hotspots – including Matlock, Hathersage, Bakewell, Buxton and Ashbourne

Around 70,000 second addresses are used as holiday homes in England and Wales, according to data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The figures are sourced from the 2021 census, which counts the number of dwellings used as a second address for at least 30 days a year by those living in England and Wales. Holiday homes accounted for 4.1% of the 1.7 million second homes recorded, with other types including the properties of a partner, parent or those used by commuters.

Concerns that holiday home owners are turning tourist hotspots into ghost towns have prompted crackdowns by governments across Britain this year.

But campaigners say the ONS figures do not account for many properties run as short-term lets, such as those listed on Airbnb, something that Chris Bailey – national campaign manager at Action on Empty Homes – described as “Britain’s biggest unregulated money-spinner”.

He added: “The latest ONS work on holiday homes might seem shocking but I’m afraid the bad news is that it is just the tip of an iceberg of homes sucked out of use.

“The issue could easily be ten times as serious across the country as the latest ONS figures suggest. We really need the Government to introduce a proper licensing scheme so that we can assess the real impact.”

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Mr Bailey called for local communities to be given powers to “limit the conversion of much-needed housing into year-round short-lets, so-called second homes and holiday homes” – “otherwise, we will turn some of our most attractive coastal and rural areas into hollowed-out ghost towns, where no one on an average wage can find anywhere to live.”

Below are the 11 areas across Derbyshire and the Peak District with the highest amount of holiday homes.