Jon Sparkes

As chief executive of national homelessness charity Crisis, I’ve been fortunate enough to be invo...

There was a distinct note of determination in the air as we all took our seats for the inaugural...

In the four weeks since the first meeting of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group, th...

Chief Executive, Jon Sparkes' blog: More rough sleepers will be helped this winter after the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon and Housing Minister, Kevin Stewart MSP, accepted the short-term recommendations of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group.

The quiet determination that has been present in the meetings since the Action Group started work on 5 October continued as we started the 4th meeting by reviewing the implementation of the actions we recommended for this winter.

Chief Executive blog: With the festive season behind us, members of the Scottish Government’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group were as focused as ever when we met for the fifth time in Shelter Scotland’s offices in Edinburgh this week.

That sense of resolve sums up the atmosphere of the 2nd stakeholder workshop of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group which took place yesterday. Colleagues from across housing, charities, justice, health, councils, housing associations and faith groups gathered to hear about and input to the progress the Action Group has made so far on recommending solutions to the Scottish Government on ending rough sleeping in Scotland and transforming the use of temporary accommodation.

Chief Executive blog: Recommendations for ending rough sleeping in Scotland are nearing completion.

Chief Executive blog: There was consensus for the principles of what we want to recommend at last week's meeting of the Scottish Government’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group.

Yesterday saw the eighth meeting of the Scottish Government's Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group (HRSAG).

Chief Executive blog: Scottish Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group stakeholder day

Latest update on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group

Jon Sparkes' latest blog on the Scottish Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group. "I am delighted to begin this blog by confirming that this week, Kevin Stewart, Minister for Local Government and Housing has accepted in principal the recommendations from the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group on how to transform temporary accommodation."

Today is a significant day in our efforts to end homelessness in Scotland for good as Local Government and Housing Minister, Kevin Stewart confirmed that the final recommendations of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group (HARSAG) have been accepted by the Scottish Government.

As the publication of the Scottish Government’s new Action Plan for Ending Homelessness Together was debated in the Scottish Parliament yesterday and received cross-party backing, Jon Sparkes, Crisis chief executive and chair of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group, (HARSAG) blogs about the significant progress that’s been made in the last 15 months.

Twelve months ago, in June 2018, I was working closely with colleagues from the Scottish Governme...

Welsh Government's homelessness action group met for the first time at the end of June. Jon Sparkes, the group's chair, reports back on progress so far.

The Wales Homelessness Action Group met for the second time towards the end of the July with many actions to discuss since the first meeting a month before. Jon Sparkes, the group chair and Crisis chief executive, reports back from the second meeting and on the progress to date.

Jon Sparkes, Crisis Chief Executive and chair of the Welsh Homelessness Action Group, reports back from the third meeting of the group. This meeting focused on solutions to reduce rough sleeping this winter and also how to end rough sleeping altogether.

Jon Sparkes, Crisis Chief Executive and chair of the Welsh Government Action Group on homelessness provides an update on the most recent meeting, where Action Group members developed solutions for reducing and ending rough sleeping.

October’s Homelessness Action Group meeting was in Carmarthen, as part of the group’s commitment...

Since last month’s meeting the Action Group has turned fully to question 1 that the Minister aske...

The Homelessness Action Group’s first meeting of the new year, in Bangor, was a chance for the group to discuss in person the recommendations we’ve been developing since the end of November.

As the Action Group in Wales finalises its report on the overall approach to ending homelessness, the group's chair gives a sense of what the group will recommend.

The Action Group chair reports back from the February meeting, which looked at how to scale-up rapid rehousing and get local partnerships in place to end homelessness.

Rough sleeping is the most brutal and devastating form of homelessness. Right now, thousands of people across England are living on the streets; sleeping in doorways and bus shelters, exposed to extreme weather and abuse and — in the worst cases — dying because of it.

The chair's update on the first meeting of the Welsh Homelessness Action Group since the UK coronavirus outbreak.

Just under two years ago a small group of people finished their work as the Homelessness & Ro...

The Scottish Government’s Housing Minister, Kevin Stewart MSP, asked me to reconvene the Homeless...

For so many of us, these past few months have meant spending more time at home than we ever have...

Last week the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group (HARSAG) met to review a revised set o...

Back in March, the Government rightly decided that night shelters and hostels were not a safe environment for people during the pandemic. Now, seven months on, the pandemic is still here, winter is fast approaching, and people sleeping rough are facing an impossible choice between freezing on the streets or staying in a shelter where they are at much greater risk of catching coronavirus.

Homelessness Action Group chair and Crisis chief executive, Jon Sparkes, reflects on the next steps now that the Welsh Government has accepted the group's recommendations in principle

The new Social Renewal Advisory Board report, published today, opens with a metaphor.  “We may al...