What the Mayor is doing to tackle rough sleeping
The Mayor's Life Off the Streets programme
The Mayor’s Life Off the Streets programme provides a range of services and initiatives to help people sleeping rough come off the streets and rebuild their lives. These services complement those provided by London’s boroughs.
The Mayor’s Life off the Streets services have helped more than 15,500 people off the streets since 2016.
At £36.6m, the budget in 2021/22 is more than quadruple the £8.45 million a year it was when the Mayor took office. This includes £12 million of City Hall funding and £24.6 million secured from the government.
The priorities underpinning all the Life Off the Streets rough sleeping services, projects and initiatives funded by the Mayor are set out in the pan-London Rough Sleeping Commissioning Framework.
Below are details of the Mayor's core rough sleeping services and grant-funded projects.
More information on all of these services, including funding and the provider organisations, can be found in the Mayor's Life Off the Streets rough sleeping services briefing.
How the Mayor supported people sleeping rough during the pandemic
The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic were felt by many in London, and the homeless population in the city were among one of the most vulnerable groups. With people sleeping rough being significantly more likely to have underlying health conditions than the wider population and far less likely to be in a position to follow many aspects of Public Health guidance, it was of great importance to the Mayor that this group were given as much support as possible to ensure that their health and safety was prioritised.
The GLA swiftly responded to the COVID-19 emergency by securing hotels and related support, food, security, cleaning and other services – as well as transport to the hotels. At the peak of the pandemic, the GLA had 14 hotels with a capacity for around 1,400 people. This included a 59-bed COVID-care hotel for individuals who were not only COVID-positive but also those who were not displaying symptoms but were vulnerable because of underlying health conditions.
Following the easing of the first lockdown period, the GLA and boroughs moved into the next phase of supporting rough sleeping through the implementation of the Mayor’s ‘In For Good’ principle. This phase consisted of offering support to everyone in the hotels to ensure that no one would need to return to rough sleeping when they left and could positively move on to settled accommodation. As of October 2021, more than 1560 people have positively moved on from GLA hotels.
Thanks to the rapid and comprehensive response of the GLA and London boroughs, rates of COVID-19 infection among London’s rough sleepers were far below that seen in other world cities. Due to the early action taken to enable those sleeping rough to self-isolate, there were also far fewer referrals to GLA hotels than anticipated for people displaying COVID-19 symptoms.
There is no denying that homelessness in London is still a pressing issue. However, the Mayor, in partnership with London’s councils, charities, health and others, continues to remain dedicated to ensuring that those sleeping rough get the support they need to not only be appropriately accommodated and kept safe during the continuing pandemic and winter, but also by developing initiatives and options that enable individuals to successfully transition to independent living.
Street outreach
Outreach workers teams, and other services which assist them in this work, locate people sleeping rough and support them to leave the streets.
This is an outreach service which focusses on rapidly responding to StreetLink referrals for people sleeping rough, and providing a consistent response across London to find people as quickly as possible when they need support.
The Night Transport Outreach team works across the London transport network and with Transport for London (TfL) to provide outreach on night buses, the Night Tube and Overground.
CHAIN is a database that holds information about people sleeping rough in London, which is provided by outreach teams and other rough sleeping services across the capital. The database is used by services as a tool to inform and record the work that they do with their clients and their outcomes.
StreetLink enables members of the public to tell specialist outreach teams about people they have seen sleeping rough, ensuring that people are linked with support as quickly as possible.
The Roma Rough Sleepers Mediator Service is a specialist service supporting people from the Roma community who are sleeping rough in London, and the organisations working with them. The service will support Roma rough sleepers to understand and access their entitlements and includes specialist immigration and employment support.
The London Navigator Team provides ‘through-care casework’ supporting people from the street, through emergency or temporary accommodation placements in to settled housing.
Immediate routes away from rough sleeping
Services which provide immediate options for someone to leave the streets or prevent them from sleeping rough. This includes emergency accommodation services and assessment centres, which provide safe shelter and support for people to find longer term accommodation.
Sleeping rough is dangerous under any circumstances, but during very cold or hot weather the negative health effects are even more severe and can pose a risk to life. SWEP is first and foremost a humanitarian response.
The Mayor’s key role is to provide guidance and make best practice policy recommendations for the delivery of SWEP, and using his resources and influence to encourage councils to adopt these ways of working
Since winter 2018, the Mayor has been directly coordinating the activation of winter SWEP services for the whole of London, and similarly has been providing guidance for responding to heat SWEP since summer 2022.
In winter:
SWEP is short-term, temporary shelter that is provided to anyone sleeping rough, regardless of their local connections or recourse to public funds. It is activated any time that the temperature is forecast to reach 0°C or below.
The Mayor funds a pan-London ‘overflow’ SWEP service which ensures that there are SWEP spaces available for everyone sleeping rough in London, by opening additional capacity when council SWEP spaces are full.
-
Please see the 2023-24 guidance for further information.
Also available are reviews of the SWEP response in London during the winters of 2017-18 and 2020-21.
Heat SWEP
There are significant differences between cold weather SWEP and a heatwave emergency response, albeit both are considered “severe weather”.
During periods of severe hot weather – as determined by a ‘Heat Health Alert’ for London, the Mayor contacts local authorities, commissioned outreach teams, day centres and other voluntary and community organisations, to ensure they are aware and taking appropriate action.
Please see the 2023-24 guidance for further information.
As part of the Mayor’s emergency response to the severe hot weather, he recommends all boroughs and services supporting rough sleepers:
-
Enhance their outreach provision, to include welfare checks and risk assessments, distribution of (or signposting) to water and other resources, and advise people about ways to stay cool.
-
Ensure that people who are rough sleeping can access suitable cool spaces.
-
Provide suitable accommodation for those people who are most vulnerable to the effects of heat.
NSNO is an assessment and reconnection service for people who have recently started sleeping rough. They are supported to access the service by outreach teams, and once at NSNO they spend time with specialist staff who will assess their situation and find the best options available to them. The NSNO team then develop a move-on plan with them, based on their specific circumstances and needs, and support them to take up that offer.
The Floating Hub moves around London, providing assessment and intensive support 24/7 to people sleeping rough in the host borough, quickly helping them into longer term accommodation. The hubs work in partnership with councils, other Mayoral rough sleeping services, local outreach teams and agencies such as substance misuse and health services, and allows councils to target areas where they know there is a need.
The Migrant Accommodation Pathways Support service (MAPS) supports non-UK nationals rough sleeping or at immediate risk of it across London. MAPS works to identify and clarify clients' entitlements, accommodation options, and work with other professionals to help them out of homelessness.
To find out more, visit the MAPS website.
The ESP aims to support faith and community-based groups which provide winter night shelters in London. The ESP supports these projects by funding a number of specialist coordinator posts who work with faith and community groups to facilitate the establishment of new shelter projects across London and the further development of those which already exist. In addition to the specialist team of coordinators, the service also administers a grant programme, again with the aim of supporting and developing projects, particularly in areas such as enhanced support work and the improvement of long-term accommodation outcomes.
To find out more, visit the Housing Justice website.
Veterans Aid’s Welfare to Wellbeing initiative provides an immediate route off the street for any UK veteran in need and a bespoke, structured pathway into independent living. The service’s ‘no first night out’ philosophy means it also supports any UK veteran who is at risk of becoming homeless in London, to prevent them from having to sleep rough.
The Hub accommodates up to 40 people at a time who are currently rough sleeping anywhere in London, as well as those at immediate risk of rough sleeping who are identified by the London Youth Gateway, a coalition of youth homelessness charities. Depaul UK is the lead organisation running the service, with support workers from New Horizon Youth Centre, and immigration support delivered on-site by Cardinal Hume Centre.
The Outside Project aims to develop safe emergency accommodation for vulnerable homeless lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ+) people, to prevent rough sleeping. The project provides a social enterprise community centre, offering safe daytime refuge, services, and pop up businesses. The Outside Project will relocate to provide 8 bed spaces from a permanent site in autumn 2021.
Longer term accommodation solutions
Homes for people with a history of sleeping rough with wrap-around support to help people to sustain their tenancies.
Clearing House acts as a point of coordination and liaison for a partnership of over 40 housing associations and many rough sleeping services. Jointly this partnership provides access for people with a history of rough sleeping to over 3,500 earmarked one-bed flats at social rent levels.
The TSTs provide floating support for former rough sleepers who have moved into homes via the Clearing House.
The service expands the work of the existing Tenancy Sustainment Teams (see above) to work with those moving into Private Rented Sector (PRS) accommodation. The teams support those who are moving into a PRS property in London after a period of sleeping rough or living in hostel accommodation. It provides targeted help to people in the crucial first few months of their new tenancy.
The Mayor has set aside up to £50m of funding for a Move-On Programme to deliver new homes for people moving on from homelessness services (since 2020 this has included COVID-19 emergency hotels), and for survivors of domestic abuse moving on from refuges.
RSAP provides capital and revenue funding to deliver move on accommodation and support to people sleeping rough, to enable them to transition to independent living.
SHAP provides capital and revenue funding to deliver much needed homes with support for rough sleepers with complex needs, as well as young people at risk of, or experiencing homelessness. The focus is on longer-term accommodation. SHAP will increase the supply of quality homes for the sector, and the attached revenue funding will also fund much-needed support services to assist people in their recovery from rough sleeping.
Support to rebuild lives
Access to appropriate support including mental and physical health, training and employment to enable people to move-on with their lives.
The Rough Sleeping and Mental Health Programme (RAMHP) aims to help people with mental health needs who are sleeping rough take a vital step towards a better quality of life, by supporting access to mental health services.
Read the Rough Sleeping and Mental Health Programme Evaluation
Enabling Assessment Service London (EASL) support people sleeping rough to access appropriate mental health services.
To find out more, visit the EASL website.
The HHPA supports people who are sleeping rough and experiencing physical or mental health issues. Former and current rough sleepers provide peer advocacy and support to help people currently sleeping rough to attend health appointments and treatment.
To find out more, visit the Groundswell website.
The Sub-regional Immigration Advice Services (SIAS) provide immigration advice for people sleeping rough, and those at risk of sleeping rough, who need specialist support to clarify/regularise their immigration status. SIAS increases the immigration advice provision for people sleeping rough in London and supports people sleeping rough to assess their immigration options and, when relevant, to obtain leave to remain and/or access to public funds so they can obtain the accommodation and support they need to exit rough sleeping.
The training programme upskills the homelessness and migrant sectors to better support non-UK nationals sleeping rough.
Contact us
If you are sleeping rough or are concerned about someone who is sleeping rough, please contact Streetlink.
If you are interested in the Mayor’s policies and services, please email [email protected]
If you’re a rough sleeping charity or service, please email the commissioning team on [email protected]
Related documents
London SWEP guidance 2023-24
GLA SWEP activation procedure
Rough Sleeping Commissioning Framework
Rough Sleeping and Mental Health Programme – reflections on core service principles
Heat SWEP Guidance 2023
Rough Sleeping and Mental Health Programme - evaluation
Need a document on this page in an accessible format?
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of a PDF or other document on this page in a more accessible format, please get in touch via our online form and tell us which format you need.
It will also help us if you tell us which assistive technology you use. We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 5 working days.