64 organisations working in the fields of homelessness and migrants’ rights have written an open letter to the Secretary of State for the Home Department and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
The letter urges the Government to reverse the decision to shorten the move-on period to 28 days and reinstate a 56-day move-on period for single adult refugees, and to allow the Government’s full pilot evaluation of the 56-day period to complete so that they may use this evidence to make wider improvements to the move-on process.
Organised by NACCOM and Homeless Link, the signatories include all the largest homelessness sector organisations such as Crisis, Shelter, St Mungos and Chartered Institute of Housing.
Signatories are clear that the U-turn is harmful, and will:
- Increase homelessness and rough sleeping
- Put pressure on local statutory and voluntary sector organisations
- Result in further use of expensive nightly paid options for those eligible, due to additional pressure on local councils and a lack of alternatives
- Undermine the government’s own commitment to ending homelessness
- Make the support provided by charities more difficult to deliver
- Put individuals at even greater risk of harm on the streets and exacerbate community tensions
- Pre-empt the Government’s own commitment to a full evaluation of the 56-day pilot due to conclude at the end of this year.
The past two years have seen a 252% increase in new refugees presenting as homeless to their local authority due to being required to leave asylum support accommodation.
The pilot was introduced because of the overwhelming evidence that the 28 day move-on period from asylum accommodation was not adequate time for people to find alternative accommodation and had become a significant factor in homelessness and rough sleeping. Extending the period to 56 days has had a demonstrable impact, helping reduce homelessness among this group significantly.
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 said:
“We were appalled at the Government U-turn on their previous decision to grant new refugees 56 days to find somewhere to live, before being asked to leave Home Office accommodation. 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 reversal on 56 days 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.”
