Homelessness in the United Kingdom is measured and responded to in differing ways in England,

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, Wales and Northern Ireland, but affects people living each of the

countries of the United Kingdom Since 1922, the United Kingdom has been made up of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales (which collectively make up Great Britain) and Northern Ireland (#Terminology, variously described as a country, province, jurisdiction or region). The ...

. Most homeless people have at least a modicum of shelter but without any security of tenure. Unsheltered people, " rough sleepers", are a small minority of homeless people.

Homeless population

The UK homeless charity Shelter estimated in 2024 that the number of people in England who were entirely homeless or in temporary accommodation was 354,000. Rough sleepers are only a small proportion of the homeless.

Crisis A crisis (: crises; : critical) is any event or period that will lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affairs, especially when ...

estimates there are roughly 12,300 rough sleepers in the UK and also 12,000 people sleeping in sheds, bins, cars, tents and night busses. The figure is derived from research by

Heriot-Watt University Heriot-Watt University () is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world's first mechanics' institute, and was subsequently granted university status by roya ...

. People experiencing homelessness sleeping in bins are sometimes crushed to death by compacting machinery or otherwise killed when bins are collected and dealt with by waste disposal companies. According to figures from the Department of Communities and Local Government, the number of people registered as homeless with local councils was just over 100,000 in 1998, rose to 135,000 in 2003 before declining in the years up to and during the

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.

. After a low of 40,000 in 2009 and 2010, the figure rose to just under 60,000 in 2017. The number living in temporary accommodation rose from 50,000 in 1998 to 100,000 in 2005, declining back to 50,000 in 2011, then rising to 80,000 in 2017. The number of rough sleepers was 4,800 in 2017 compared to 1,800 in 2010, when comparable records begin. Crisis attributes rising homelessness to a shortage of social housing, housing benefits not covering private rents and a shortage of homeless prevention schemes for people leaving care. Of the people experiencing homelessness who died in 2017, the average age was 44 for men and 42 for women. Suicide, drugs including alcohol, are the most common causes of death among people experiencing homelessness in the UK. In 2023, the number of homeless people in England hit record levels, with 104,510 people in England in temporary accommodation. An estimated 3,898 people slept rough in England in 2023, over double the estimated figure from 2010.

History

Historically, support for people who became homeless was provided by

monastic communities Monasticism (; ), also called monachism or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual activities. Monastic life plays an important role in many Christian churches, especially ...

. After the Reformation, forms of support through early local government structures were provided by means of the

poor law In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of hel ...

, which differed in

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the Law of the United Kingdom#Legal jurisdictions, three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Th ...

, and

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Eventually, a system of formally elected

local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

replaced the

poor law unions A poor law union was a geographical territory, and early local government unit, in Great Britain and Ireland. Poor law unions existed in England and Wales from 1834 to 1930 for the administration of poor relief. Prior to the Poor Law Amendment Ac ...

. The current system of local authority housing and homelessness assistance in England, was introduced by the Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977 and is currently overseen through the Housing Act 1996.

Prevention

To prevent homelessness the charity

maintains the public sector should: *Build 100,500 social homes a year to address the needs of people experiencing homelessness and those on low income. *Introduce

Housing First Housing First is a policy that offers unconditional, permanent housing as quickly as possible to homeless people, and other supportive services afterward. It was first discussed in the 1990s, and in the following decades became government policy ...

nationally providing homes and specialised support for people experiencing homelessness. *Improve rights for private renters and improve housing benefit. *The care system, hospitals, prisons should be legally required to help find homes for those leaving their care. *There should be homelessness specialists at Job Centres.

Causes of homelessness

The longer term causes of homelessness have been examined by a number of research studies. A number of different pathways into homelessness have been identified; research suggests that both personal factors (e.g. addictions) and structural factors (e.g. poverty) are ultimately responsible for the sequence of events that results in homelessness. For young people, there are additional factors that appear to be involved, most notably needing to face the responsibilities of independent living before they are ready for them. Rising costs of housing and increases in

job insecurity Job security is the probability that an individual will keep their job; a job with a high level of security is such that a person with the job would have a small chance of losing it. Many factors threaten job security: globalization, outsourcing ...

have also been identified as contributing factors.

Government assistance

Policy on homelessness is overseen by the

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for housing, communities, and local government in England. It was established in May 2006 ...

and Homes and Communities Agency in England, the

Scottish Government The Scottish Government (, ) is the executive arm of the devolved government of Scotland. It was formed in 1999 as the Scottish Executive following the 1997 referendum on Scottish devolution, and is headquartered at St Andrew's House in ...

Communities Directorate in Scotland, the

Welsh Government The Welsh Government ( ) is the Executive (government), executive arm of the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of Cabinet secretary, cabinet secretaries and Minister of State, ministers. It is led by the F ...

, and the

Department for Communities The Department for Communities (DfC, Irish Language, Irish: ''An Roinn Pobal''; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster Scots: ''Depairtment fur Commonities'') is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The m ...

and

Northern Ireland Housing Executive The Northern Ireland Housing Executive is the public housing authority for Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's largest social housing landlord, and the enforcing authority for those parts of housing orders that involve houses with multiple ...

in Northern Ireland. It has been a devolved policy area outside England since the introduction of

devolution Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territori ...

in the 1990s. Scotland has a dedicated Minister for Housing who is a junior minister of the Scottish Government, who has direct responsibility for homelessness and rough sleeping, government policy on housing and debt advice. The

Grenfell Tower fire On 14 June 2017, a List of fires in high-rise buildings, high-rise fire broke out in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower block of Public housing in the United Kingdom, flats in North Kensington, West London, England, at 00:54 British Summer Time, BST ...

in June 2017 focused national attention on homelessness and housing quality, and resulted in around 255 people becoming homeless overnight. It was reported in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' in 2018 that half of young people at risk of homelessness in the UK who approached their local authority, received no significant help. All Local Housing Authorities (LHAs) in the United Kingdom have a legal statutory duty to provide 24-hour advice to

homeless Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

people, or those who are at risk of becoming homeless within 28 days. Once an individual applies to the appropriate City Council, Borough Council, District Council or Unitary Authority for assistance, from a person claiming to be homeless (or threatened with homelessness), the Local Housing Authority is also legally duty bound to make detailed inquiries into that person's circumstances, in order to decide whether they meet the criteria, which are defined as ''statutory homelessness''. For people meeting such criteria, the Local Housing Authority therefore has a legal statutory duty to find Temporary Accommodation for the person, and then provide them with assistance to find a permanent, long term adequate dwelling, that will usually be within the Private Rented Sector (PRS), but sometimes will be a property with a Housing Association, a council house, or a council flat.

Statutory homelessness

Definition

A person suffers ''statutory homelessness'' if governmental regulations oblige the council to provide housing-related support to the person. At present this criterion is met if (and only if) all of the following conditions are true: *they do not have a permanent home *the person is not prevented from accessing UK public funds by immigration laws *the person has a ''local connection'' to the local authority's area (this could, for example, be the residential presence of family, friends, or previous residence of the person themselves) *the person ''unintentionally'' became homeless (this does not include eviction for non-payment of rent, if they could afford to pay it) *the person is in ''priority need''; this condition has been abolished in Scotland since the start of 2013, and there are campaigns for it to be abolished in the rest of the UK. The definition of ''priority need'' varies between England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, but generally includes any of following conditions being met: *pregnancy *a dependant child *an age of 16–17 *aged 18–20 and leaving local authority care *vulnerability due to **old age, or **mental illness, or **mental/physical disability **leaving the armed forces **leaving prison *fleeing, or at the risk of, domestic violence *homelessness due to an emergency (such as flood, fire, or other disaster) A person does not have to be roofless to legally qualify as lacking a permanent home. They may be in possession of accommodation which it is not reasonably feasible to continue to use by virtue of its affordability, condition, or location. The requirement to have a ''local connection'' does not apply if it would lead to the applicant becoming a victim of violence, or at risk of violence. In Wales, ''priority need'' was similarly extended to include individuals who are aged 18 to 20 and at risk of financial or sexual exploitation, but provided they are leaving care.

Consequences

Temporary accommodation must be provided to those that might be suffering ''statutory homelessness'', pending a final decision. Often

bed and breakfast A bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. In addition, a B&B sometimes has the hosts living in the house. ''Bed and breakfast'' is also used to ...

hotels are used for temporary accommodation, unless a suitable

hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory sleeping 4–20 people, with shared use of a lounge and usually a kitchen. Rooms can be private or shared - mixe ...

or refuge is available. The suitability of temporary accommodation is often a topic of concern for local media, and pressure groups. If the council concludes that the applicant suffers ''statutory homelessness'' then the local authority has a legal duty to find long-term accommodation for the applicant and their household (those dependants who would ordinarily be living with them), and any other person whom it is reasonable to expect to reside with them. The council must offer/continue to provide temporary accommodation to such an applicant, on an immediate basis, until long-term accommodation is found for them. Long-term accommodation may not necessarily be a socially rented home (one provided by the council, or by a

Housing Association In Ireland and the United Kingdom, housing associations are private, Non-profit organization, non-profit organisations that provide low-cost "Public housing in the United Kingdom, social housing" for people in need of a home. Any budget surpl ...

); the council can discharge its duty by finding an appropriate private sector tenancy for the applicant.

Non-statutory homelessness

If the authority decides that a person does lack a home, but does not qualify as suffering ''statutory homelessness'', then a lesser obligation applies. Where the applicant merely lacks a ''local connection'' to the council, the council will usually refer the applicant's case to a local authority with which they do have a ''local connection''. If the applicant is in ''priority need'', but is considered to have become homeless intentionally, the local authority is obliged to provide temporary accommodation for as long as is reasonably necessary for the applicant to find long-term accommodation; this is usually a fortnight, but additional periods of similar length can sometimes be provided at the council's discretion which are typically granted in cases of extenuating circumstances.

Rough sleeping

A national service, called Streetlink, was established in 2012 to help members of the public obtain near-immediate assistance for specific rough sleepers, with the support of the Government (as housing is a devolved matter, the service currently only extends to England). Currently, the service doesn't operate on a statutory basis, and the involvement of local authorities is merely due to political pressure from the government and charities, with funding being provided by the government (and others) on an ad-hoc basis. The UK government has cut funding to local authorities and local authorities feel forced to reduce services for people experiencing homelessness. It is feared this will increase the numbers of rough sleepers and increase the numbers dying while sleeping rough. A member of the public who is concerned that someone is sleeping on the streets can report the individual's details via the Street Link website or by calling its hotline. Someone who finds themselves sleeping on the streets can also report their situation using the same methods. The service aims to respond within 24 hours, including an assessment of the individual circumstances and an offer of temporary accommodation for the following nights. The response typically includes a visit to the rough sleeper early in the morning that follows the day or night on which the report has been made. The service operates via a number of charities and with the assistance of local councils. Embankment soup run

Where appropriate, rough sleepers will also be offered specialist support: *if they have substance misuse issues, they will be referred for support from organisations such as St. Mungo's (despite the name, this is a non-religious charity) *if they are foreign nationals with no right to access public funds in the UK,

repatriation Repatriation is the return of a thing or person to its or their country of origin, respectively. The term may refer to non-human entities, such as converting a foreign currency into the currency of one's own country, as well as the return of mi ...

assistance will be offered, including finding accommodation in the home country, construction of support plans, and financial assistance. Other organisations, like The Connection at St. Martin's, address a range of complex needs. This is because many people sleeping rough struggle with multiple complex needs like addiction, poor mental health or unclear immigration status. It was reported in 2018 that at least 50 local authorities had enacted Public Space Protection Orders to deter begging in town centres.

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

has argued that these ordinances are illegal and that people experiencing homelessness often lack the access to the legal aid support needed to challenge them.Legal Aid Agency taken to court for refusing to help rough sleepers
''

''. 23 October 2018

Non-government assistance

Practical advice regarding homelessness can be obtained through a number of major non-governmental organisations including, *

Citizens Advice Bureau Citizens AdviceCitizens Advice is the operating name of The National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux, which is the umbrella charity for a wider network of local advice centres. The abbreviation CitA is sometimes used to refer to this natio ...

s and some other charities also offer free legal advice in person, by telephone, or by email, from qualified lawyers and others operating on a

pro bono ( English: 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. The term traditionally referred to provision of legal services by legal professionals for people who a ...

basis * Shelter provides extensive advice about homelessness and other housing problems on their website, and from the telephone number given there, including about rights and legal situations.
Alabaré
is a homeless charity that supports over 3,000 people through its extensive network of homes, drop-in centres, and specialised support services. Its goal is to end homelessness, help people regain stability, improve their wellbeing and build bright, independent futures.

References

External links

Amnesty International UK's Homelessness Report: An Obstacle Course

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

The Connection at St. Martin's

Homeless Link

National Housing Federation

Alabare
{{Homelessness, state=expanded Homelessness in the United Kingdom