How government policy should change if we want to end homelessness

Michael Allard, Research Manager

06.12.2022

Homelessness is a solvable problem – but its also a problem that’s growing and one that cannot be ignored any longer. It is caused by a lack of genuinely affordable housing, systemic discrimination, and poverty. The choices governments make about homelessness can really make a difference in addressing these causes, by either bringing levels down or forcing more people into homelessness.

This important role played by government policy is a central theme of the Homelessness Monitor research series. The latest Monitor, published this week by Crisis and Heriot-Watt University, is a comprehensive assessment of how homelessness stands in England, Scotland and Wales. It is a definitive account of what’s working well and what needs to change to end homelessness in the three nations. One of the most striking differences is the Scottish and Welsh governments have made commitments to ending homelessness, whereas the Westminster government has not. This has led to changes in homelessness policy and practice in Scotland and Wales – including legislation preventing people who are homeless being accommodated in poor conditions in Scotland for more than a week; and ring-fenced funding for Welsh local authorities to spend on prevention and support for people facing homelessness.

In 2020 there were an estimated 227,000 households experiencing the worst forms of homelessness in Great Britain – including people having to sofa surf, sleep rough, or stay in unsuitable accommodation like B&Bs. While it is not surprising the number of people experiencing homelessness is higher in England because of population size, it is striking that rates of homelessness are also much higher: 0.86% of all households in England are experiencing the worst forms of homelessness on any given night, compared with 0.69% in Wales and 0.57% in Scotland.

The GB Monitor gives us a range of reasons why rates of homelessness are worst in England. One is the chronic lack of social housing and weaker commitments to do something about this. In the last five years, only 12% of affordable homes built in England were available at social rent compared to 68% in Scotland and 79% in Wales. It is well established that Scotland has proportionally a lot more social housing compared to England and Wales, but the Monitor also suggests that social landlords in England and Wales allocate a much lower proportion of available lettings to homeless households compared to Scotland.

Another reason is historic policy decisions. An example of this is the abolition of priority need in Scotland in 2012 which has helped to reduce rough sleeping, in particular, to very low levels. In England and Wales, priority need means local authorities do not have a legal duty to offer settled housing to people outside of certain priority categories (for example, those with dependent children or specific support needs), cruelly trapping thousands of people in homelessness every year. However, recent changes introduced in Wales have significantly expanded priority need to include everyone experiencing street homelessness, opening support up to many more people. The Welsh Government has also recently appointed an expert panel to review homelessness legislation, and whether the law on priority need, and other areas, should be changed.

These are also differences in how money is spent on homelessness support in each nation. In this financial year, around six times less money is being allocated in England and Wales compared to Scotland on Local Welfare Assistance and Discretionary Housing Payments – funds which help prevent homelessness by enabling people to avoid destitution and to help them afford housing costs. In England, government spending on temporary accommodation last year was equivalent to a £74 tax contribution from every English household (well over half of government spending on homelessness), while only £27 per household went to support and prevention. In contrast, the majority of spending in Wales per household was on support and prevention.

Despite these differences, there are still far too many people facing homelessness, and for too long, in all three nations. Well over 100,000 households are in temporary accommodation (TA) across Great Britain, and despite progress in other areas the number of households in temporary accommodation in Scotland and Wales is rising.  Data released after the Monitor report was written shows that nearly half of those in English TA have been living there for over two years, and that the average length of time spent in Scottish TA is just under 200 days.*

It’s easy to see from this evidence that the Scottish and Welsh governments need to continue delivering on their plans and commitments to end homelessness and that a similar, meaningful ambition is needed from the UK Government if we want to see greater progress. This would benefit all three nations, given that some of the key opportunities for change are under Westminster’s control. Local Housing Allowance (LHA), which determines levels of housing benefit for private renters in all three nations, is frozen at a level based on rents from 2018-19 – keeping thousands of people homeless because they can’t find an affordable home. Statistical modelling in the Monitor demonstrates that increasing the LHA rate would be one of the most effective policies for reducing core homelessness, helping tens of thousands of people access affordable housing.

This action is crucial at a time when the cost of living emergency is pushing thousands more people into homelessness. The Monitor estimates over 300,000 individuals in Great Britain will experience the worst forms of homelessness in 2023 – around a third more than the number seen three years earlier. We will be publishing more research imminently showing just how the rising cost of living in Britain is affecting people facing homelessness.

* See DLUHC’s and the Scottish government’s 2021-22 homelessness statistics.