I was homeless. Tackling rough sleeping requires a system overhaul – decriminalisation is just the start
Plus: Another scoop from The Lead North about the so-called 'Reform Pub', councillors are dropping like flies in this week's Reform Watch, and all our top recommendations in The Lead Digest.
The government’s announcement that it will scrap a 200-year-old law that criminalises rough sleeping has been welcomed by homelessness charities and campaigners alike. Repealing the draconian 1824 Vagrancy Act marks a clear departure from an outdated legislative stance – one that used prisons to warehouse the poor – but it should not be mistaken for a comprehensive solution.
To be serious about tackling the homelessness crisis, policymakers must commit to long-term, sustainable reform that moves beyond headline-grabbing gestures.
Last month, a flight delay on my way home from a conference in New Orleans granted me an unexpected 24 hours in Atlanta. It became one of the most sobering parts of my trip, highlighting how deeply entrenched homelessness is in America. Whenever I strayed from the well-lit, tourist-friendly paths, I was confronted by the sheer scale of rough sleeping on the streets. Emaciated bodies shuffled along, pushing trolleys piled high with bin bags, while shredded pieces of what might once have been clothing hung from their skeletal frames. Children, barely of school age, playing drums on the streets beside their parents in New Orleans unsettled me just as much as seeing those who should have been enjoying retirement emerge from tents in a rough sleeper camp behind a row of shops.
In the US, homelessness is generational, a brutal consequence of late-stage capitalism's cruel individualism. It isn’t simply a failure of policy; it is a system that has discarded the poor, the elderly, and the disabled in plain sight. Without strong intervention, the UK could be heading in the same direction.
The UK hasn’t yet reached US levels of despair, but we’re edging closer each day. The welfare state that once offered protection and dignity has been gutted by consecutive rounds of austerity. Tents in city centres, housing the UK’s growing rough sleeper population, are now as commonplace as a high street Costa. Those forced onto the streets are often people failed by fractured systems, people like me.
“Rough sleeping is not a moral failing, but the result of systemic barriers and prolonged policy neglect.”
More than 20 years ago, I was a homeless care leaver, failed by a broken system. Today, a third of care leavers still become homeless within two years of leaving care. Meanwhile, the number of unhoused 18-20-year-old care leavers has increased by 54 per cent over the past five years. This is alarming, especially considering that almost a quarter of the homeless population has care experience. Domestic abuse continues to be a major driver of homelessness for women. Around 40 per cent of homeless women cite domestic abuse as a contributing factor.
The number of households being supported by local authorities for homelessness continues to rise. Between January and March 2024, statutory homelessness assessments increased by over 10 per cent compared to the same period last year, with more than 117,000 households in temporary accommodation – the highest on record. These aren’t just statistics, they are a damning indictment of how far the UK has fallen in supporting its most vulnerable. The housing crisis has been inflamed by a sharp decline in social housing, sky-high rents, and the rise of rogue landlords forcing out tenants for quick profits.
While Labour’s commitment to scrap the Vagrancy Act picks up where the Conservatives left off in 2024, there are clear distinctions. The former government had planned to replace the Act with legislation under a proposed Criminal Justice Bill that would have allowed police to continue removing so-called ‘nuisance’ rough sleepers and beggars. Fortunately, this never happened after their defeat at the polls. This government’s approach pairs the repeal with a wider package of preventative measures – including funding for homelessness prevention and a longer-term housing strategy. The repeal acknowledges that rough sleeping is not a moral failing, but the result of systemic barriers and prolonged policy neglect.
In 2017, the Conservative government launched a Housing First pilot in three areas: Greater Manchester, the West Midlands, and the Liverpool City Region. The model, inspired by successful schemes in Finland, offered immediate, stable housing alongside wraparound support. Its impact was clear, over 2,000 people were housed, many moving into long-term accommodation. The scheme expanded to over 100 local authorities but was not extended beyond 2024. The government’s spending review has pledged to ring-fence £100 million for homelessness prevention over the next 2 years, as part of a broader 10-year plan to end rough sleeping. This sits alongside a £39 billion investment in social and affordable housing. This pledge is encouraging, but it must be underpinned by legislation to prevent future governments from dismantling progress.
Homelessness prevention must go beyond housing targets and crisis responses. It requires structural commitment enshrined in law, backed by funding, and delivered through integrated health, housing and social care services. Investment in Housing First must be restored and scaled nationally, not confined to pilots. We cannot solve the homelessness crisis with temporary fixes. We need a system that sees people in tents not as nuisances, but as neighbours who have been failed.
Repealing the Vagrancy Act is a vital and long overdue step. But if we want to pull people back from the brink and reintegrate them into our communities, we must go much further.■
About the author: Chantelle Lunt is a Labour councillor, writer, lecturer, PhD researcher and activist. She has a professional background in policing and public services, teaches at LJMU’s School of Education and is currently researching the post-16 educational experiences of care leavers.
At The Lead we’re dedicated to telling stories beyond the bright lights of London and Manchester (although sometimes we still will). We have dedicated journalists and titles in Blackpool, Lancashire, Calderdale, Teesside and Southport bringing in-depth news and features twice-a-week to those communities…
In Blackpool, we reported that a venue associated with the owners of Blackpool’s Talbot – the so-called “Reform pub” visited by Nigel Farage last week – hosted a British National Party annual conference and other meetings. Among those who visited Blackpool’s Tangerine Tavern between 2012 and 2014 was neo-Nazi paedophile Jack Renshaw, who is now behind bars after plotting the murder of an MP, and its then-leader Nick Griffin. Hope Not Hate said: “It is unfortunate that Reform UK seems happy to join them on that miserable guestlist."
Nobody at Lancashire County Council or Reform UK wanted to answer simple questions about where funding had come from during one cabinet member’s election campaign. Cllr Matthew Salter, another Tory defector, says his leaflets were paid for by a local quarry campaign. They disagree. The party of transparency is not so transparent.
In 2024, we asked what the killed the crabs. Now a report by councillors into an incident which saw a mass wash-up of dead crustaceans on North-East beaches has criticised a lack of co-operation from Government agencies. The Teesside Lead continued this very important thread for us this week.
The Lead is keeping an eye on Reform UK and their fellow travellers. Get in touch on X, Bluesky and Instagram with tips and stories. We especially want to hear from readers whose local council is now run by Farage’s followers.
First, Reform UK councillors are “dropping like flies,” as Hope Not Hate has reported. In the six weeks since the local elections, the party has lost nine councillors with reasons ranging from social posts calling Hitler a “legend” to matters that are currently with the police. (Hat tip to reader Dave).
Past social media comments, unsurprisingly, continue to haunt Reform’s new councilors. This week, it was the turn of Joe Tetlow, (Accrington North). As our colleague Jamie Lopez reported for The Lancashire Lead, Tetlow shared a screenshot last week of a news article about murder suspect Apapale Adoum, he wrote: “Refugee's welcome. Keep them coming in Liebour are saying. When will the penny drop for some people”. Asked on what basis he believed Adoum to be a refugee, he responded: “Beautiful British Name. Invite him round for tea and crumpets and a spot of lunch…” Also last week, the party was forced to remove its candidate for today’s Blundellsands by-election, Irene Davidson, after posts discovered on her now-deleted X account were deemed “unacceptable”.
In Devon, two Reform county councillors – brothers Neil and Tony Stevens – and an election agent have been reported to the police by their colleague, Ed Hill, over election expenses. He alleges that they went over the campaign spending limit by £170. Hill was previously the election agent for Stevens but was replaced by Rob Sheridan on 3 June, a day before the election expenses forms were submitted. Hill said he was keeping is “promise” to "hold our candidates and councillors to the same high standards we expect of others”. He has now been removed as chairman of Reform UK Exeter after “bringing the party into disrepute.”
Finally, in Leicester, the council is arguing about… flags. Last week, Reform councillors approved a move to discontinue a previously agreed schedule of flags to be displayed outside County Hall, including those to mark LGBTQ+ Pride Month, Windrush Day and others. It wouldn’t be the first time Reform councillors have had a row over flags. As if there isn’t anything better to do!
The Lead Digest
This week, Ed enjoyed this Tribune Magazine piece which uses Stoke-On-Trent as a case study into the demise of the postindustrial city. The Lead North spent some time in Stone-On-Trent last year. You can read our reporting here.
Padraig has been obsessed with Will Storr’s piece on Chat-GPT generated Substack essays, published in his newsletter. He offers some helpful signposts that you’re “being served gruel” and tips for how “we humans” can rise above the tide. If you’re into the art of storytelling, give his Substack a follow.
Zoe flagged this “bleak but on the nose” comment piece in the Guardian about the three angry old men who could get us all killed: Trump, Netanyahu and Khamenei. She also wrote this brilliant piece for The New World about what Britain can learn from the happiest country in the world — Finland.
Finally, Ella and Natalie have been taking a break from the news cycle. Ella has sunk her teeth into the visceral Nobel Prize winner, The Vegetarian, by Han Kang. Meanwhile, Natalie – who is feeling very soppy after her son’s first birthday – loved Sam Parker’s Substack essay on the pros and cons of having a baby, a tonic for the pervasive doom and gloom narrative around parenting.
If you enjoy receiving The Lead then consider becoming a paid subscriber to access additional, exclusive, content and support our mission to bring your insights and perspectives beyond the mainstream headlines on people, policy and place. Any story tips or things you think we should be covering then get in touch: natalie@thelead.uk.
Ella, Zoe, Ed, Luke, Natalie, Padraig, and The Lead team
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