Sixty-four organisations working in homelessness and migrant support have sent a joint letter to the recently appointed Home Secretary and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, urging them to abandon a policy change implemented by their predecessors that risks driving up homelessness and rough sleeping.
A pilot scheme which extended the period successful asylum seekers had to leave Home Office accommodation from 28 days to 56 days had been due to run until the end of 2025.
However, in late August the Government reversed this policy and stated all new single asylum seekers from 1 September onwards would have only 28 days to leave asylum accommodation after a successful application.
In the joint letter, coordinated by Homeless Link and the No Accommodation Network (NACCOM), 64 organisations signing warn this u-turn will “will increase homelessness and rough sleeping, cause individual harm, put pressure on local statutory and voluntary sector organisations, and undermine the Government’s commitment to ending homelessness through a cross-departmental strategy.”
The signatories note that the 56-day move on period pilot was brought in precisely to address concerns the 28-day period was insufficient for successful asylum seekers to find new accommodation, gain employment, or access benefits. Consequently, local authorities and voluntary services saw a spike in homelessness and rough sleeping among refugees.
“The emerging evidence we have,” the letter continues “indicates that the 56-day pilot has helped reduce rates of homelessness and enabled more people to successfully move on from Home Office accommodation and begin to integrate and participate in their communities.”
New Secretaries of State have been appointed since the decision to move to 28 days was made. The letter urges Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Steve Reed to “take a fresh look” at the situation and revert to the original terms of the 56-day pilot scheme.
Commenting on the letter, Bridget Young, Director of NACCOM, said: "The move on period is a critical time for people leaving Home Office accommodation to find safe, secure housing and support, to avoid ending up homeless and destitute. Extending this period by a short time has been shown to make a material difference in avoiding rough sleeping and ensuring refugees are able to move on with their lives and integrate into communities more quickly. This is a small policy change that has made a significant positive impact and we urge the government to reconsider its decision to reverse it."
Rick Henderson, CEO at Homeless Link, the national membership body for frontline homelessness services, said: “We were appalled at the Government u-turn. A shorter move-on period is guaranteed to increase rough sleeping and homelessness among an extremely vulnerable group of people, just as the Government is planning further funding to reduce rough sleeping. If it remains, it will undermine the commitment to a new ‘cross-departmental’ Homelessness Strategy.
“That 64 organisations working directly on these issues oppose the policy reversal is testament to the fact that the longer move-on period has been effective in ensuring refugees receive critical support to find accommodation and prevent destitution. Changing this now due to public pressure and anti-migrant rhetoric is a huge mistake that will not appease its critics and will only put individuals at risk of harm on the streets while adding to the challenges and expenses faced by overstretched homelessness services and local authorities. We urge the new Secretary of State for the Home Office to reverse this decision and reassert the Government’s pledge to work together to end homelessness.”
