What is homelessness?
Homeless people are not just people that sleep on the
streets
Although many of the young people that Centrepoint works with
have slept rough in the past, most have been homeless in other
ways. For example, they might have been:
- In temporary hostel or bed and breakfast accommodation
- 'Sofa surfing' (staying temporarily with lots of different
people)
- In unsuitable or unsafe accommodation
Young people sleeping on the streets are the most visible
examples of youth homelessness, but Centrepoint supports all
homeless young people, whatever their experience of
homelessness.
Statutory homelessness
Only some homeless people are legally entitled to be housed by
their local authority. The people that local authorities prioritise
for assistance are referred to as 'statutory homeless'. There are
other types of help that homeless people can be legally entitled to
even if they are not statutory homeless, like housing advice. Many
young people at Centrepoint are not statutory homeless but still
receive housing support from their local council.
To be classed as statutory homeless you have to fulfil all five
of the following conditions:
1. Have nowhere suitable to live - e.g. you have no legal
right to the accommodation in which you live, your accommodation is
overcrowded, or you are likely to lose your home within the next 28
days.
2. Be eligible for
help - this is to make sure that you are able to
receive help from a local council in this country and will consider
things such as your immigration status and whether or not you
normally live in the UK.
3. Be in priority
need - this will determine whether or not you are in
one of the pre-defined groups of people who are prioritised for
assistance including pregnant women, those with dependent children,
care leavers and young people aged 16-17.
4. Not be 'intentionally'
homeless - you will be classed as intentionally
homeless only if you deliberately did (or did not do) something
which made you homeless without good reason.
5. Have a connection with the
local area - this means that the local council which
provides you with help has to be one which you have some kind of
connection with such as you have lived, worked or have family
connections there.
The law in this area is complicated and this is just an
introduction. If you think you might be homeless, visit our Get help
now section.
How many young people are
homeless?
The government collects statistics on people who are statutory
homeless, but this does not include everyone who we would normally
think of as homeless.
In research commissioned by Centrepoint, the University of York
produced a more accurate estimate of the number of young people who
were homeless in the UK. They did this by looking at the number of
young people who were in touch with homelessness services around
the country, as well as the number who slept rough and were
accepted as statutory homelessness.
78,000-80,000 young people experienced
homelessness in a year in the UK
Centrepoint / University of York
study
This is only an estimate, but it gives some idea of the scale of
the problem of youth homelessness. If anything, it is likely to be
an underestimate of the problem as it only counts young people who
have been in contact with homelessness services. There may still be
many who are 'hidden homeless' - sleeping on sofas or living in
squats out of sight.