Crisis believes that no one should be homeless as a result of their immigration status and yet migrant homeless people face all the dangers that homeless people from the UK face and more. To address this, Crisis is commissioning research to estimate the scale and causes of homelessness amongst EEA nationals across Great Britain and are seeking an experienced and skilled contractor to help undertake this.  

After UK nationals, people originating from the European Economic Area (EEA) currently comprise the biggest proportion of the homelessness population in Great Britain. In 2018/19 the GLA’s Combined Homelessness and Information Network (CHAIN) reported 38% of rough sleepers in London were EEA nationals, a proportion that has been rising in recent years but there is limited evidence where comparable data is lacking. 

Crisis is now looking to establish a clearer and more in depth estimate of the overall number of EEA nationals experiencing different forms of homelessness, specifically hidden homelessness.  The evidence will underpin Crisis’ own services and also inform our policy work and campaigning activity relating to migrant homelessness.

On a daily basis, we know migrant homeless people can experience suspicion about their motives, being excluded from much of the available support, and experiencing threats of removal from the country. 

They are extremely vulnerable to the changing political environment leaving them more at risk of homelessness. This includes changes to entitlements which may affect ability to access housing benefit and support, other forms of welfare and access to support and services.  

The further uncertainty for this population, created by Brexit, makes it incredibly important to understand not only the scale of homelessness amongst EEA nationals but also their support needs. This research will help to better understand the impact of both current and potential future changes to their entitlements. 

To help build a clearer picture, Crisis are now seeking a contractor to help us answer these questions, helping to form the foundation of Crisis’ work with EEA nationals going forward and feed into understanding the impact of different policy decisions related to EEA nationals.  

Submission proposals are due on the 20th October 2019. If you are interested, please see the Invitation to Tender. 

For further information, please contact Sophie.boobis@crisis.org.uk