‘No second night on streets’ for homeless
ROUGH sleepers should “not spend a second night on the streets” according to an inquiry into the growing number of homeless in Birmingham.
The city council’s housing watchdog committee has also agreed a “no wrong door” policy will also mean vulnerable homeless people will not be sent away if they call for help.
The policies were agreed after a report into rough sleeping by the committee.
Committee chairman Cllr Victoria Quinn (Lab, Sparkbrook) said rough sleeping had doubled in the last year and was now a major public concern.
The inquiry found the council, public agencies and chari- ties needed to do more to coordinate action and must “never walk by, know what part they play and ensure no second night on the street for anyone”.
Expensive housing, reduction in welfare and cuts to mental health, domestic violence and addiction services had all played a part in the growing problem, it was claimed.
The official rough sleeper count found seven people in a single night in 2011. That had risen to 55 in 2016.
Ms Quinn said that while Birmingham was at the centre of a “perfect storm in the human misery of rough sleeping”, the public outcry and number of volunteers working in soup kitchens and with homeless charities showed the city had a “huge human heart”.
Birmingham still has a lower rough sleeper rate than many other major cities including Manchester and Bristol but it is much higher than the best-performing city, Newcastle, where services are closely co-ordinated.
The council’s housing chief Cllr Peter Griffith welcomed the report and agreed to adopt the no second night policy.
He added: “We are pleased that a number of improvements have already been made during the inquiry, such as remodelling existing provision of accommodation to support rough sleepers with dogs and provision for couples. We have also been exploring the provision of shortterm, night shelter opportunities with existing providers as well as the use of temporary homelessness units that can be located safely and appropriately in the city.”