With the alarming news that the number of people sleeping rough has more than doubled in the last eight years and a homeless man being found dead in the shadow of Westminster, you would think this would act as a wake-up call to the Government that the national crisis we see on our streets can no longer be ignored and that urgent action is needed.
In response to this latest tragedy, the Government will inevitably point to the Homelessness Reduction Act coming into force in little over a month, a new rough sleeping advisory panel and their determination to take forward Housing First schemes. However, with all this talk of shiny new initiatives, it would be easy to have missed recently announced Government proposals for reforming the funding of supported housing, that if implemented, would put at risk the very housing people sleeping rough currently depend on to get off the streets.
Don't get me wrong, initiatives like the Homelessness Reduction Act and Housing First have a role to play in tackling rough sleeping. However, so do the existing 60,000 ‘short-term' supported housing beds across the country.
Supported housing plays a vital role in helping the most vulnerable people in our society, giving them not only a place to stay, but also equipping them with the skills they need to rebuild their lives and move-on to independent living. By removing the last genuine protections afforded to the funding available to build and maintain supported housing that houses vulnerable young people, individuals sleeping rough and those fleeing domestic violence, what we are seeing now on our streets will only be the tip of the iceberg.
Charities like YMCA will not only struggle to continue to support these people, it will also stop the creation of new supported housing for the rising numbers of people currently without a safe place to stay.
So in all the talk that will again be sparked off by the tragedy this week, we must not forget that charities, staff and volunteers are working hard to give people who are forced to sleep rough an opportunity to escape the streets and start again.
If we are to tackle this national crisis, the Government not only has to progress new initiatives, but also ensure that the very housing that currently provides a lifeline to tens of thousands of people without a home is not jeopardised.
It's time for the Government to go back to the drawing board and find a solution to reform funding for short-term supported housing that really works for the individuals who are in desperate need for this lifeline and the organisations that go above and beyond to provide it.
Denise Hatton is chief executive for the National Council of YMCA's in England & Wales
