Edited by Tracey Copeland
When Poverty and Homelessness Become a Criminal Matter
Posted 03.10.12
As the new law criminalising squatting begins to bite, Bob Baker - Director of the long-running homeless organisation The Simon Community - outlines why he deplores this strategy and asks whether it is right that a young man studying for an apprenticeship has been jailed for three months and handed a criminal record for life simply because he had nowhere to live.
With almost a million properties in the country estimated to be standing empty, and growing numbers either homeless or facing a serious housing need, Bob Baker states that house-building is simply failing to meet demand.
He further asserts that - 'property owners seeing houses as financial assets rather than homes for people to live in is immoral'.
Click here to read the full article in Guardian Letters and read a response by Henry Pryor on why land will never be released for building cheap homes and what can perhaps be done instead to help ease the housing crisis.
Further Reading
Use this link to read this Housing Solidarity view on what effects scarcity of a commodity like housing has and why building alone will not solve the problem.
Click here to read Aufhebens in depth article 'The Housing Question' on the history of social housing and the working class in the UK.
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One in Four Rough Sleepers Helped by Winter Shelters Return to the Streets
Posted 11.10.12
Analysis by Homeless Link of last year's winter provision has shown that one in four people who seek help from shelters in cold weather returned to a life on the streets last winter.
Almost half of those who are helped by cold weather services in their community during the winter are known rough sleepers, the report has shown, with a quarter of them returning to the streets when the shelters are shut down.
Every community should provide specialist services during the winter months to ensure that no one has to sleep out in freezing temperatures and put their lives at risk. However, we also need to use the opportunity to ensure no one returns to the streets.
Homeless Link surveyed every local authority in the UK and the 101 that responded told them they provided emergency cold weather support to 2,308 people during winter 2011.
The research found that:
Following this research, Homeless Link is making a number of recommendations to local authorities including:
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Churches Unite to Provide Homeless Winter Shelters This Winter
Posted 19.10.12
As a new snapshot survey of councils finds homelessness continues to rise (ref. 24dash.com) across England as welfare reforms bite, the prospect of a cold winter on the streets must surely be a daunting prospect for the Capital's rough sleepers.
Thankfully, Churches across London are uniting this winter in their efforts to once again provide beds for the Capital's homeless.
Last year, around 400 churches provided shelter to over 1,400 homeless people, providing a vital lifeline against the biting cold.
Typically, night shelters are hosted at a different church each night of the week from November to March. In addition to a bed for the night, guests also receive meals and access to showers and other services. The guests are referred to the shelters by local day centres, voluntary organisations and statutory bodies.
Now, the churches are looking to share their experiences and in so doing, hope to inspire other churches to open night shelters in their communities.
A day-long Homelessness, Hospitality and Hope event will take place at Southwark Cathedral on 10 November and will bring together hundreds of volunteers who have been involved in providing services at this critical time.
There will be a service of celebration and a choice of six seminars - covering issues like addiction and mental health, working with local authorities and the place of spirituality in night shelter communities as well as a service of commissioning for volunteers.
The Bishop of London, the Rt Rev Richard Chartres said: "We are rightly concerned with the underlying causes of homelessness in our society. But the more immediate concern is to offer shelter, food and a listening ear."
For further information visit Christian Today.
