Just 100 days to end rough sleeping before the Olympics come to Britain

3 November 2009

Homeless Link praises partnership work of London Delivery Board in bringing the hardest to reach off the streets.

Organisers of international sporting events in other countries have often treated homeless people as a visible embarrassment and have undertaken efforts to "sweep" them out of sight. In 2005, when London was awarded the 2012 Olympics, Homeless Link called for the London games to be different. Since then, we have led the campaign to end rough sleeping by 2012 and for a lasting social legacy that will serve as a catalyst for ending all homelessness in our country. We were delighted, therefore, when, almost a year ago, on November 18 2008, the Government formally announced its intention to work with partners to end rough sleeping 'once and for all' by 2012. The Mayor of London has also publicly committed his support for this ambition and set up a multi-agency Delivery Board to make it happen.

Jenny Edwards, Chief Executive of Homeless Link, the national umbrella organisation for frontline homelessness charities, said,

"Today we are 1000 days from the goal of ending rough sleeping. This ambition started with our members, who solve, on a daily basis, the individual homelessness of people who others have given up on.

"We are very encouraged by the strategic work of the London Delivery Board, directed by the Mayor of London. In less than 9 months, nearly 90 of the 205 rough sleepers who have been identified by London's outreach teams as amongst the most entrenched, have been successfully helped into accommodation. These individuals have traditionally been the hardest to reach as a result of having slept rough for so many years and having multiple issues. The achievement of getting nearly half of these individuals off the streets is a testament to the value of partnership working between the public and third sectors and a focus on achieving common goals.

"We know that preventing new people from having to sleep rough is absolutely key to end rough sleeping within 1000 days. There has already been good progress in reductions from care and armed services and we are actively working to reduce the flow from prison. Political leadership in these areas, combined with the input of people who have experience of homelessness, will ensure this country achieves a place in history for social justice.

---

Press releases, papers and documents published on this page are the intellectual property of an organisation unrelated to ePolitix.com. We promote their parliamentary and political campaigning activities as they are subscribers to the ePolitix.com service.

As such, ePolitix.com does not edit, endorse, or attempt to balance the opinions expressed on this page. The content of press releases and other such types of content are the responsibility of the originating organisation.