September   

Involve partner agencies   and identify your independent partner(s)

Involving other agencies ensures that you will estimate the most accurate single figure, because:

  • Agencies working ‘on the ground’ will have information about who is likely to be sleeping rough.
  • In local authorities that cover large areas, involving agencies that see people in particular areas (such as a day centre in a particular town, or a warden covering a particular park), or have an overall coverage (such as police), will ensure that rough sleeping is evaluated across the whole area.
  • Their knowledge, expertise, and intelligence about groups and individuals will provide a wider range of information on which to base discussion and analysis of rough sleeping numbers.
  • The single figure is less likely to be challenged, both because agencies have taken part in the process and because the single figure has been reached using a clear system of evidence gathering.
  • It enables local authorities to understand of the numbers and the issues, but also the potential solutions and opportunities for partnership working.

Local partner agencies for your estimate should include some or all of the following:

  • Outreach teams
  • Advice agencies
  • Day centres, night shelters, hostels
  • Housing associations
  • Housing department
  • Social services, youth workers
  • Women’s services
  • Police, probation, community safety teams
  • Health services, inc. mental health
  • Drug and alcohol services
  • Faith groups, soup runs, street pastors
  • Substance misuse agencies

Ideally, agencies will assign a lead representative who has access to the relevant information and some knowledge about the situation of individuals sleeping rough, so that they can answer specific questions and reach reliable conclusions about the likelihood of someone sleeping rough on a particular night.

In rural areas, or areas with few or no specific homelessness services, other partner agencies may need to be approached for information. The coordinator can assess whether it would be useful for them to attend an estimate meeting. These could include National Parks Service rangers, parish councils, refuse and street cleaning teams, town centre security and car parking staff.

All estimates will be need involve at least one independent partner at the estimate meeting, to be ‘fully assured’ by the Quality Assurance Verifier. Please refer to the section ‘involving independent partners’ above.

Explain the process   

Where possible, hold initial meetings or conversations with each agency to explain the process, identify any potential sources of disagreement and resolve them in advance. For example, some agencies describe their service users as sleeping rough, but instead they are sofa surfing or squatting, so won’t fall into the rough sleeping definition used for the snapshot estimate process. Having these conversations at the start of the process should make the estimate meeting more effective.

Notify agencies of the date chosen for the ‘typical’ night of the estimate. Please use the format ‘the night of x into the morning of x’ to avoid any confusion. Ask them only to share the date on a need-to-know basis to avoid causing changes in the pattern of rough sleeping that might distort the estimate.

Send this guidance to all agencies involved so that they understand the definition of rough sleeping and the process for the chosen approach.

Organise the estimate meeting  

Confirm a date for the estimate meeting, for after the chosen ‘typical’ night. A template invite letter can be found in the Useful forms and other resources section below.

In areas where the local authority covers a large rural area, the coordinator may decide to carry out the consultation with local partner agencies via a range means, such as collecting evidence by email and holding an online estimate meeting to arrive at the single figure. Homeless Link must still be contacted to arrange a quality assurance call.

We highly recommend that all estimate meetings are arranged as online meetings. Please ensure partner agencies are aware of this and are able to access the relevant software for the estimate meeting to take place virtually and they are included in the process, are able to provide their intelligence and listen to others intelligence. Some organisations restrict use of certain meeting software. Check in advance if this will cause any problems.

Explain who will be included in the estimate

Refer to the rough sleeping definition below:

“People sleeping, about to bed down (sitting on/in or standing next to their bedding) or actually bedded down in the open air (such as on the streets, in tents, doorways, parks, bus shelters or encampments). People in buildings or other places not designed for habitation (such as stairwells, barns, sheds, car parks, cars, derelict boats, stations, or “bashes”).” 

It is important that agencies taking part understand the definition of rough sleeping and do not include people in hostels or shelters, individuals who are sofa-surfing, people in campsites or other sites used for recreational purposes, organised protests, squatters or Travellers.

Agencies should understand that the purpose of the estimate is to assess the numbers of people rough sleeping on the chosen ‘typical’ night, rather than a larger sample of street activity, hidden homelessness or people using homelessness services. This means that, for example, a person who sometimes sleeps rough but sometimes has accommodation/shelter will not be included in the estimate unless there is evidence that they did sleep rough on the chosen ‘typical’ night.

Some services record people as sleeping rough based only on self-reporting, which might conflict with outreach data about how many people are seen or, where there is no outreach provision, cannot be verified. These services might need support to assess whether someone is street homeless on the ‘typical’ night used for the estimate. This can be done, for example, by asking for additional information such as rough sleeping locations that can be checked by other agencies. Some people may be reluctant to share their sleep sites for safety reasons. Women and young people, for example, will often try to remain hidden. Agencies should be mindful of this and work on a case-by-case basis when considering thresholds of evidence for rough sleeping (see ‘Evidence of rough sleeping’ section below).

Agree information sharing protocols   

Estimates rely on agencies being able to share accurate basic information about an individual’s situation on a particular night. There has to be a way of identifying individuals, by name or a unique identifier e.g. initials and date of birth. Without this there is a risk of double counting or including people who have been housed.

Where agencies already have a data sharing protocol in place, for example from a Rough Sleeping Action Group or other multi-agency work, this can be used. If no data sharing agreement exists, you can use the template in the Useful Forms and Other Resources section below.

Some agencies may decline to join the data sharing agreement. In this case you should explain the protocol and give reassurance about what the data will be used for and that it will be discarded following the estimate. If they still refuse let them know that, while they can still submit information, more weight will be given to those agencies whose evidence is supported by complete data, as otherwise there is a risk of arriving at a less accurate figure, for example due to double counting.

Agencies should collect evidence for the night of the estimate and either bring it to the estimate meeting to discuss verbally or send by email in a password encrypted file. You can either circulate the template estimate form (see Useful Forms and Other Resources below) or create your own form.

The local authority holds and owns any personal data collected; they are the data controller. It is their responsibility to ensure that the correct procedures are in place to adhere to the Data Protection Act 2018.

Homeless Link and MHCLG receive aggregate data, via DELTA. No personal data is shared with either organisation therefore they are not data controllers in this process.

A week before the estimate night  

Severe weather   

Check the weather forecast leading up to the night chosen for the estimate. If there is severe weather this could change patterns of rough sleeping, especially if the severe weather emergency protocol (SWEP) is in place. If this happens, you might need to change the date in order to ensure agencies are basing intelligence on a ‘typical’ night. Please inform Homeless Link if you decide to change your date, as we will need to make new quality assurance arrangements.

Night of, and morning after the estimate   

Partner agencies note any evidence of people sleeping rough, including observation and self-reporting, including specific details of location and individuals where available.

After the ‘typical’ night  

The estimate meeting  

Holding an estimate meeting is the most effective way to collate the evidence of rough sleeping on the chosen night and to discuss any potential duplicates or misinformation. Where disagreement is likely to occur, or where there are conflicting approaches between agencies on the scale of the issue or potential solutions, a meeting is most likely to get to the bottom of the issue.

Please note that the estimate meeting cannot take place on a date before the chosen ‘typical’ night.

Homeless Link Quality Assurance Verifiers will remotely attend a percentage of estimate meetings as part of the process based on a combination of concern/risk, geography and availability. The coordinator or any partners can invite Homeless Link to their meeting, request additional support or raise concerns for Homeless Link to investigate.  Please contact verifiers@homelesslink.org.uk if you would like to request a Homeless Link Quality Assurance Verifier to attend your estimate meeting.

If there is already a local forum or network which brings together key agencies working with people sleeping rough, this can be used for the estimate meeting (with expanded membership, if needed) as long as sufficient data sharing protocols are in place. If the local authority has a rough sleeping action group or similar meeting, the estimate process will be an extension of their ongoing work to identify and assist people sleeping rough.

Please refer to the section Useful Forms and Other Resources below, for a template agenda and notes for the estimate meeting.

If, despite best efforts, it is not possible for an agency to attend your online evidence-based estimate meeting, ask them to submit their evidence in a password encrypted email file or verbally in a telephone conference. Collate the evidence and resolve any issues or questions that may arise at the evidence-based estimate meeting.

During the quality assurance process, Homeless Link will check which agencies have been involved. We expect that estimates using the evidence-based process will show more than one data source.

If the process does not involve at least one independent partner, Homeless Link will not be able to assess the rough sleeping snapshot estimate as ‘assured’. The independent partner(s) must attend the evidence-based estimate meeting; they may also contribute intelligence and be involved in the discussion of the final figure.

Evidence of rough sleeping   

Each agency should present information on who they think slept rough on the night of the estimate, with reference to the definition of rough sleeping above. Evidence should be provided for each individual.

Examples of evidence that an individual slept rough include:

  • Individual seen bedded down by the agency.
  • Individual seen bedded down by another partner agency.
  • Individual known to the agency and it is clear that they do not have accommodation that they can occupy (people sleeping rough over a longer period/with a history of rough sleeping).
  • Individual self-reports sleeping rough over the period alongside evidence that they are sleeping rough (use of services, carrying/storing belongings, appearance – while bearing in mind many people sleeping rough are well-presented, other known factors).
  • Information that demonstrates that someone known to be sleeping rough intermittently did sleep rough on the night in question (e.g. they weren’t seen in their hostel; were at the day centre early; were discharged from prison or hospital shortly before).

The final decision on the estimated single figure is made by the local authority, taking into account all the evidence and eliminating duplicates or unsubstantiated data. The coordinator might need to collate further information following the estimate meeting in order to resolve any outstanding questions (particularly where people are known to move between local authority boundaries, as there is a risk of duplication with neighbouring estimates). Partner agencies should raise concerns with Homeless Link if they think decisions have been made that are not in line with this guidance by emailing: verifiers@homelesslink.org.uk

Quality Assurance

Coordinators should liaise with Homeless Link throughout the whole process to ensure their estimate is as reliable as possible. Homeless Link should be invited to the estimate meeting – we will identify some meetings for Quality Assurance Verifiers to attend remotely, in all other cases quality assurance will take place by telephone.

The Quality Assurance Verifier will be checking that:

  • The coordinator has followed the guidance.
  • A ‘typical’ night has been chosen, in line with this guidance.
  • The coordinator has contacted a range of local agencies, including relevant voluntary and community organisations, and invited them to be part of the estimate process.
  • At least one independent partner has been involved in the process and attended the estimate meeting.
  • Agencies have been given sufficient information to participate in the process and provide the information required.
  • Agencies understand the principle of the ‘typical’ night and the definition of rough sleeping.
  • There is a data sharing agreement in place between agencies.
  • Enough data and evidence has been gathered to resolve conflicting information and avoid double counting.
  • The estimate relates to the ‘typical’ night chosen, not a wider time period or group of homeless people.
  • Intelligence has been examined and discussed to arrive at a reliable figure of people sleeping rough on the night chosen for the estimate.
  • There is demographic data for each person sleeping rough and any gaps in data are explained and logged as ‘not known’.
  • There is a snapshot estimate to be submitted to MHCLG.

An estimate may not be ‘assured’ if, for example: there were no independent partners involved; there was a lack of robust evidence that people included were sleeping rough on that night; or evidence was not included about known sleep sites or individuals sleeping rough.

After the estimate process ends, the Quality Assurance Verifier will complete the quality assurance form, which will be reviewed by Homeless Link’s Project Coordinator before being returned to the local authority lead.