On his first day as Prime Minister, Andy Burnham pledged to end homelessness and rough sleeping. A statement which has been welcomed across the charity sector, St Basils responds:
“It’s encouraging to see a Prime Minister make ending homelessness, and particularly rough sleeping, a national priority. Every night someone spends sleeping rough is one night too many. But if we truly want to end homelessness, we also need to focus on prevention.
At St Basils, we see every day that with the right support at the right time, many young people never have to reach crisis point. Helping someone stay in education, resolve a family breakdown, find safe accommodation or access employment can prevent homelessness before it starts.
Ending rough sleeping will require investment, partnership, collaboration and long-term commitment from government, local authorities, charities and communities. We all have a role to play.
We’re hopeful that this renewed focus creates an opportunity to invest not only in responding to homelessness, but in preventing it too. Because prevention changes lives, reduces pressure on public services and gives young people the chance to build brighter futures.”