Strategy and partnerships to end rough sleeping

By taking a strategic approach and working in partnership, local authorities can achieve sustainable reductions in rough sleeping. This page highlights resources and approaches that local authorities and their partners can use to create and review their strategic approach and to create local partnerships.

Legislative context

The 2002 Homelessness Act placed a statutory duty on every local authority to undertake a homelessness review and to create a homelessness strategy at least once every five years. The legislation also required local authorities to strengthen their assistance to key vulnerable groups. More information on homelessness strategies can be found in the CLG's Homelessness code of guidance for local authorities.

Local authorities have statutory duties to house certain vulnerable groups. However to end rough sleeping, CLG's Good Practice Notes: Developing a Strategic Approach to prevent and end rough sleeping also encourages local authorities to look at how they can use Section 192 (3) of the Housing Act 1996 to prevent rough sleeping amongst groups who are eligible for assistance but not in priority need.

Reviewing your strategic approach

Good practice in writing homelessness strategies can be found in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) document Local Authorities’ Homelessness Strategies: Evaluation and Good Practice which outlines key findings on the three key stages of reviews, strategies and action plans.

The Preventing Homelessness: A strategy health check is a self assessment toolkit to help local authorities review their homelessness strategy and establish how effective their services are in tackling and preventing homelessness. The toolkit is also useful for local authorities to share with delivery partners.

Ending Rough Sleeping by 2012: A Self Assessment Health Check is a toolkit created by Communities and Local Government to help local authorities review their strategic approach and practice. You can use the tool as a basis to review your local capacity and explore the need for additional interventions or a specific rough sleeping strategy; or to develop a subregional approach to ending rough sleeping.

Assessing the extent of rough sleeping in your area

Local rough sleeper counts provide a snapshot picture of the extent of rough sleeping, and are a useful measure of tracking trends in rough sleeping over time. They should be conducted in areas were there is a known or suspected rough sleeping problem. The 2007 Guidance on Evaluating the Extent of Rough Sleeping outlines good practice in conducting a street count.

Partnership working and information sharing with local services and communities is crucial to build a more detailed knowledge base about rough sleeping in your area. The Prevention Opportunities Mapping Toolkit (PrOMPT) can provide a framework for understanding pathways into rough sleeping in your area and identifying any gaps in provision.

CLG are developing a new approach called Street Needs Audit (SNA) to supplement the counts by gathering more information about individuals, recording whether there is an active action plan in place for the person and the lead agency that is taking responsibility.

Target setting and monitoring

Setting targets allows local authorities and their partners to follow a rigorous, outcome-orientated approach to rough sleeping. Identifying measurable outcomes and timescales can facilitate effective action planning, galvanise cross-departmental and cross-sector engagement , and enable ongoing evaluation and review of  the effectiveness of local approaches to ending rough sleeping. Target setting should be part of a ongoing cycle of monitoring, review and consultation. The process of establishing targets should include:

• reviewing needs and provision to identify areas where development can take place
• cross sector involvement
• setting clear goals that are appropriate to local need, alongside a practice-driven action plan with milestones
• allocating responsibility

The 2003 Homelessness Directorate advice note Achieving Positive Outcomes on Homelessness suggests outcomes that local authorities may wish to adopt.

Partnership working

Partnership working is essential in meeting the needs of people who sleep rough. Without good partnership interventions may become uncoordinated or obstacles may even be placed in the way. Consulting, including and communicating with partners at every step is is vital to build trust and create an environment in which partnership can flourish.

Valuable local partnerships can occur at many different levels including strategic, service delivery, and learning and best practice. The causes of rough sleeping as well as the solutions cut across  health, social care, education, substance misuse and criminal justice as well as housing.

Rough sleeping strategies can not operate as stand-alone documents but need to link with wider local authority priorities and policies. Equally a good partnership between statutory and nonstatutory stakeholders is essential to increase the range of knowledge and skills available, and to provide more innovative, responsive and coordinated interventions.