Vital solutions to ending migrant homelessness - Joint Briefing
August 2024
This joint briefing, supported by over 70 organisations, sets out the key drivers of migrant homelessness and how hostile immigration policies drive families into destitution and homelessness. It outlines what policies this government should implement to end migrant homelessness.
Our recommendations:
Ensure that changes to the immigration and asylum system do not actively contribute to an increase in migrant homelessness by:
allowing those who have arrived since the introduction of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 to enter the asylum system and have their claims processed accordingly;
repealing the Illegal Migration Act 2023.
Recognise and address the impact that restrictions on public funds have on homelessness:
reviewing and monitoring all immigration-based restrictions on public funds to mitigate their role in driving homelessness;
clarifying the legal powers and expectations on local authorities to accommodate and support migrants with restricted eligibility to public funds;
ensuring sufficient funding from central Government to allow local authorities to ensure a minimum level of suitable accommodation provision, regardless of immigration status.
Stop the flow of homelessness from the asylum system by:
allowing 56 days following an asylum decision before the cessation of asylum support, in line with the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 (HRA);
extending the HRA Duty to Refer to the Home Office;
working with local authorities, migrant sector and homelessness sector providers to develop a co-ordinated and integrated move-on process that looks to prevent homelessness wherever possible;
granting people seeking asylum the right to work after six months.
Expand access to quality legal advice through improving access to free immigration and welfare benefits advice by:
funding and promoting the expansion of embedded advice provision in homelessness and homelessness prevention settings;
restoring legal aid for early legal advice to pre-Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 levels for immigration, welfare benefits and housing law;
committing to wider reform of the legal aid system, to end the existence of immigration and asylum legal aid deserts and ensure advice is available to anyone who needs it.
Develop a cross-departmental approach to tackling rough sleeping and homelessness by:
Government creating a cross-Governmental strategy to tackling homelessness, led by a homelessness task force directed by the Cabinet Office, with representatives from the Home Office, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Ministry of Justice, Department for Education, Department for Work and Pensions, Department of Health and Social Care, and Ministry of Defence;
requiring the Home Office to be a key and accountable part of the cross-Governmental strategy and task force.