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Exclusive: Councils told homeless to sleep rough to get accommodation in virus crisis, charity says

Homeless person sleeping - Yui Mok/PA
Homeless person sleeping - Yui Mok/PA
Coronavirus Article Bar with counter ..
Coronavirus Article Bar with counter ..

Homeless people claim councils encouraged them to sleep on the street in order to access healthcare and accommodation during the coronavirus pandemic, charity workers have said.

Centrepoint, a charity providing accommodation and support to homeless people aged between 16 and 25, said young people at risk of homelessness were told by councils to sleep rough on the streets so they could be housed in emergency hotel and hostel accommodation during the outbreak.

Charity workers also found that 75 per cent of council respondents across England had seen an increase in homelessness in their area since the onset of the virus crisis.

The report, entitled "Locked Out: Youth Homelessness During and Beyond the Covid-19 Pandemic", is based on a survey of 125 English councils, analysis of Centrepoint's helpline data and interviews with local authority and charity staff.

Paul Brocklehurst, the Centrepoint helpline manager, said: "Some councils will need to see someone sleeping rough a few nights before offering support.

"This is especially troubling, as many young people sleeping rough try to find hidden corners of the streets that feel safer and are not in plain sight, and therefore are not easily spotted by council officers and not picked up by the services.

"Without evidence of rough sleeping on the streets, some councils won't offer a young person access to housing services."

Mr Brocklehurst cited one example of a young person who was asked to get a letter from their parents, who had just kicked them out, in order to prove to the council that they were homeless.

Another case involved a council who called a young person's parents who kicked them out and asked if it was true.

"If the parents lie to the council and say the young person is still securely housed, then the council will shut down the case and the young person will be left on the streets," he said.

"Things changed over the course of lockdown. Councils started becoming more accommodating and were quicker to place people in hotels.

"But once hotel rooms ran out, they reverted back to tough rules. This left a significant gap of those who are newly rough sleeping, and who have just become homeless during the pandemic."

The number of people sleeping rough has risen dramatically homelessness
The number of people sleeping rough has risen dramatically homelessness

The report's researchers concluded: "The coronavirus crisis has exposed many of the deep fault lines in British society and has brought into sharp focus the insecurity in which millions of people in the UK are living – whether by working in precarious and unprotected employment, living in overcrowded housing or facing the threat of eviction brought on by a sudden loss of income.

"Stable, long-term accommodation and the opportunities to access employment, training and education will be critical to support both young people and help the UK to recover from the pandemic.

"By grasping these challenges now, the Government can use this period as an opportunity to make much needed changes to help young people across the country to succeed."