Homeless Link responds to the CHAIN Q3 2024/25 statistics
On 31 January, the CHAIN homelessness database published its quarterly report detailing levels of rough sleeping in London between October and December 2024. CHAIN is the UK’s most detailed and comprehensive rough sleeping database.
Key findings for Q3 2024/25 include:
- A total of 4,612 people were recorded as sleeping rough in the capital. This is the second highest quarterly figure on record, down by only 168 people on the Q2 2024/25 peak. It is a 5% increase compared to a year ago.
- The number of new rough sleepers was 2,115. This has fallen by 7% annually and by 10% since Q2.
- However, the number of people classed as living on the streets has risen to 704. This is an increase of 144 people (26%) annually and is 3% higher than in the previous quarter.
On 20 January, the Government announced that the Rough Sleeping Winter Pressures Funding, a scheme to increase the use of emergency accommodation for rough sleepers, will be tripled from £10 million to £30 million.
Rick Henderson, CEO at Homeless Link, the national membership body for frontline homelessness services, said:
“A shocking number of people face the trauma of sleeping on our streets this winter. Thousands of lives are being ruined because our support services and the systems that fund them have been pushed to breaking point. But it doesn’t have to be this way. We can stem the tide of people being pushed into homelessness by ensuring the right support is in place.
“The Government has set up an Inter-Ministerial group to lead on a cross-government strategy to address homelessness, and has pledged to reform funding before the spending review. The Mayor of London is also due to publish the plan of action on rough sleeping during the spring. This is a positive start, but now is the time to get it right once and for all and end homelessness for good.
“We are calling for a wholesale review and reset of the funding system and a national homelessness strategy that shifts the focus from crisis management to prevention to ensure that people do not lose their homes in the first place and that those individuals on our streets get the support they need to move-on for good.”
