The Guardian view on rough sleeping: Burnham’s laudable target is in danger of being missed | Editorial
But an ongoing acute shortage of suitable housing and the latest tranche of early prisoner releases mean ministers know that the prime minister’s laudable target is in danger of being missed.
Key points
- There were 8,748 rough sleepers in England in June, an increase of about 1,000 since January (Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland collect data separately).
- These are among the most vulnerable people in society, both in terms of past experiences and future prospects, including drastically curtailed life expectancy.
- The complex and sometimes chaotic situations of people who end up on the streets, most of whom are men, mean that helping them is challenging.
But the underlying affordability crisis needs tackling too Bringing an end to rough sleeping was among Andy Burnham’s first pledges after entering Downing Street – as it was when he became mayor of Manchester.
Additional details
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- With temperatures dropping, and frosts expected, winter night shelters across the UK are up and running.
- Energetic mayors and councils can help street homeless people to rebuild their lives.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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