UPDATE
On Monday 13 May 2024, the Home Secretary, James Cleverly, announced that the UK Government has listened to the outcry, and will amend the Criminal Justice Bill’s rough sleeper section to compel police and local authorities to support services before criminal sanctions could be used.
References to odours in the Bill would be removed, with an explanation that the original intention had been to tackle dumped rubbish or human waste, rather than criminalising rough sleepers for being unable to wash.
The government will also change part of its definition of nuisance rough sleeping from being “capable of causing distress” to require it to be specifically about damage to property or disruption of a business.
We are really pleased to hear about this change of heart from the government. We will be continuing to monitor the Bill’s progress: there is still much work to do. The Bill does not describe how the issue of increased rough sleeping will be tackled, if at all, by government.
The information below was correct at the time of first release. We still encourage you to contact your MP if you would like them to be aware of rough sleeping issues in your constituency. Our podcast episode below outlines some of the ongoing concerns of church leaders who are responding to the increase in demand for support, and is still sadly very relevant.
Background
The Vagrancy Act 1824, an ‘Act for the Punishment of idle and disorderly Persons, and Rogues and Vagabonds, in England’ uses language that would be considered old-fashioned and out of place to express attitudes towards rough sleepers that should also be considered out of place in modern society.
The UK Parliament held this view, and voted to repeal the act in 2023. Yet, at the beginning of May 2024, this 200-year-old law still stands.
Replacement legislation to the 1824 Act has been placed in the Criminal Justice Bill 2024, which is currently working its way through Parliament. It received headlines in UK media, helped by a campaign from Crisis, due to its definitions of ‘nuisance’ rough sleeping:
A person does “something that is a nuisance” if the person—
excerpts from Criminal Justice Bill 2024, §69 (4) and (5), as of 31 January 2024
a. causes or does something capable of causing damage, disruption, harassment or distress
“damage” includes—
c) damage to the environment (including excessive noise, smells, litter or deposits of waste)
“distress” includes distress caused by—
b) the display of any writing, sign, or other visible representation that is threatening, intimidating, abusive or insulting
…
There are many reasons why people may be rough sleepers. Homelessness is a complex issue with no easy answers. But rough sleepers’ visibility on our streets and in our parks is a reminder to us of a broken system; of poverty in the UK. The government’s 2024 Bill, giving authorities the power to move rough sleepers on and to issue fines of £1,000-£2,500, replaces the 1824 Act with an even harsher one.
Taking Action
We are calling for MPs to reject the rough sleeping section of the Criminal Justice Bill 2024. A better use of Government resources would give rough sleepers the support and protection they need, while treating them with dignity and as people of inherent value, rather than saddling them with debts they cannot pay.
Writing to your MP
Would you consider writing to your MP about this live issue? You can use the template letter below as a starting point, but please personalise it and add any experiences you have that could help your MP to understand how the Criminal Justice Bill’s section on rough sleeping is unacceptable to you in a modern society.
Alternatively, use the Crisis link above to send a message to your MP via their online portal. Remember to personalise your message either way. More than 10,000 people have already done so. There are signs that at least the ‘excessive smells’ wording will be dropped from the Bill, but our goal is that the whole concept of criminalising rough sleepers should be dismissed.
A view from churches in London’s West End
Rough sleeping occurs throughout the UK, with an estimated total of around 3,900 individuals in autumn 2023. There is, however, a high concentration of rough sleeping in London and the south east of England – nearly half of all rough sleeping in the UK according to government statistics.
Several churches in London’s West End have been supporting rough sleepers for decades. Some worship gatherings are predominantly made up of rough sleepers who find community, acceptance, love and hope. You can read about a joint letter from the West End churches denouncing the Criminal Justice Bill, reported by Premier Christian and in The Tablet.
Two of the West End church leaders involved in the open letter, Father Dominic Robinson and the Revd Jennifer Mills-Knutsen talked to us about their experience, and the response they had from their local MPs. You can listen on the conversation on our 10 minutes on justice for rough sleepers podcast episode.
What next?
Perhaps their stories will inspire you to explore supporting rough sleepers as a church, or a group of churches in your area? The Housing Justice charity can offer advice and resources to help churches to take action.