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The issue of homelessness in England continues to escalate, with rough sleeping on the rise across the country. Moreover, the visible sign of homelessness is often tents that are pitched on the streets of towns and cities, which poses a significant problem. In fact, some 150,000 children are living in temporary accommodation, which results in separation from their schools and friends. Mostly, they are made to reside with their families in a single crowded room. The Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, claims the situation is England’s worst housing crisis in living memory. The new government seeks to establish a homelessness reduction unit, and the Labour Party pledges to “put Britain back on track to ending homelessness” to tackle the issue.
Although a challenging problem, homelessness is not something new, and the government can take assistance from past success stories. In 1999, Tony Blair, then-Prime Minister, committed to reducing rough sleepers by two-thirds within three years. They declared their achievement a year ahead of schedule by reducing the number of England’s rough sleepers from 1,850 to 532. The Labour Party, in its manifesto, promised to meet its homelessness goals by “building on the lessons of our past,” referring to the Blair government’s success.
However, as per the latest official count, in 2017 there were 3,898 rough sleepers in England – 120% higher than the 1,768 rough sleepers in 2010. Unfortunately, the tent encampments are just the most visible signs of homelessness. Apart from this, people are forced to live in temporary accommodation for a prolonged period, resulting in councils spending £1bn on it last year.
According to Mr Brady, who was deputy director of the Rough Sleepers Unit when Tony Blair was Prime Minister, the key to the Blair administration’s success was to get the Prime Minister’s name and reputation attached to the target. Additionally, the government departments were helping achieve this goal, including the Department of Health and the Home Office. The government had adopted a three-pronged strategy, including gathering data, moving the homeless to private rented quarters, and putting support services to ensure people did not become homeless again.
In conclusion, the new government faces a more challenging and expensive task than their predecessors in the 1990s and 2000s. The Blair years do present a significant lesson, and the government needs to have all departments working towards the same goal. Although ending rough sleeping is an excellent initiative, the government must also concentrate on the creation and continued provision of social and affordable housing to accommodate the increasing number of homeless families
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