The Fight for Homeless Bill of Rights
February 14, 2023
Learn about the Homeless Bill of Rights and its impact on addressing social justice and relieving suffering. Join the movement to empower the homeless community.
Action on Homes 2022: What Happened & Where Do We Go From Here
ACTION ON HOMES Schedule
ACTION ON HOMES Launch Video
HIGHLIGHTING THE ISSUES
take a look.
Read About Our Festival of Ideas
THE Programme & Videos
ACTION ON HOMES: FESTIVAL OF IDEAS
Held: Wednesday, October 19, 2022
How housing affects us - lived experience
Museum of Homelessness Jess and Matt Turtle Co-Founders
KEY POINTS RAISED:
WHAT WE NEED IS CONNECTION, COMPASSION AND CREATIVITY POLICY DECISIONS BEING MADE BY PEOPLE WHO ARE HOMELESS, PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN HOMELESS & PEOPLE WORKING ON THE FRONT LINE ORGANISING
MOH THREE THINGS: ESSENTIAL FOR CHANGE
1 - PEOPLE PUSHING BACK
2 - SUPPORTING GRASSROOTS LIVED EXPERIENCE PROJECTS
3 - COME TOGETHER AND LOOK AFTER EACH OTHER
“I WENT TO BIRMINGHAM, WHICH IS THE EXEMPT CAPITAL OF THE UK. UP THERE YOU HAVE GOT IT EVERYWHERE, ROGUE LANDLORDS MAKING MONEY OFF PEOPLES MISERY. I WOULD HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE FOR A LOT OF THESE DEATHS.”
LINKS TO JESS & MATT's WORK:
How housing affects us - lived experience
Case Studies From The B&H Housing Coalition Jim Deans & Daniel Harris Speak On Local Issues Both Are Formally Homeless
KEY POINTS RAISED:
How We Get OUT of HOMELESSNESS
Its more difficult today. 250 people experiencing homelessness are queuing for food and supplies every week, up from 10 when SUSSEX HOMELESS SUPPORT started 6 years ago.
CITYWIDE SUMMIT TO FOLLOWING THE ACTION ON HOMES MODEL
How Housing Affects Us - Lived Experience
Help Available, At Present
What Actions Are Other Areas Taking?
What Practical Actions Can/Must We Take? - To Solve The Housing and Homelessness Crisis.
LISTENING TO THOSE WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE EMPOWERING CHANGE FROM THE BOTTOM UP
Key stats from Daniel Harris Homeless Client Survey Indicate Severe Issues around dissatisfaction with a range of issues such as Brighton and Hove City Council Homeless Assistance and lack of Communication, Empathy and Compassion. Leading to everyone stating their homelessness journey worsened their Mental Health.
"Whilst living in emergency accommodation I saw so many people die. I was working at the time I had a mental health breakdown because I saw the person who raped me as a kid. I was a bit naive thinking there would be help.... and they (Brighton & Hove City Council) just said you are not vulnerable enough! it meant so many barriers to get over those hurdles."
"If we dont leave here today with a clear understanding of how we get together and how we sort it, because its not just us in this room its everybody in this city gets together and A Either we can solve it? or B, I am going to have 500 people in three months time, because that’s the absolute reality.”
How housing affects us - lived experience
Case Studies From Angela & Michelle From Friends, Families, Travellers.
KEY POINTS RAISED:
For members of the community. We are in a crisis. There has been an assault on the communities for some time but it's really come to a head because there's a huge chronic lack of site provision Nationally and Also Locally.
New legislation and that is the PCSCA which is the police crime a sentencing and courts act. It was made an act in April 28th it actually came into enactment on June 28th.
There's at least 1.700 families who are on waiting lists across the country and those are the families that actually responded to our research and if you think there could be up to 10 people in a household. You're looking at a lot of people. If you look at the biannual caravan counts as well. Added to all those little pockets of intelligence that people have around the country. We're looking approximately 25,000 individuals who have nowhere in which to live. It's called being statutory homeless.
Gypsies and traveler’s are being legislated out of existence and it's a terrible time at the moment. It's very worrying for individuals
"What it means is that It's now a criminal offence to be a gypsy on land public lands, whatever land without permission. Before it was a case of it was a civil offence, so local authorities and police had to go through a process to actually get land back or possession of land. Now. This legislation is really pernicious and it's draconian in effect What it does is it forces families to move constantly?"
"My only option because the two and a half year old child at the time was to go into bricks and mortar, into temporary accommodation and I have to say that was the hardest the hardest thing and I've ever had to do. I had to re-home the dog and all of the adjustments that go into that and I really cannot put into words how difficult that is for a lot of people and how many people just cannot function in bricks and mortar, particularly temporary accommodation and even going into the private rented."
Help Available, At Present
Hannah Bradburn - LAWSTOP Housing & Homelessness Law
KEY POINTS RAISED:
For Frontline Workers and Advocates in housing and homelessness, to get up-skilled and be better at advocating for homeless people and handling their cases. LawStop takes on Housing Cases; Disrepair, Homelessness Decisions, including Suitability, from challenges at the High Court to local challenges with Brighton and Hove City Council. Finally Community Care Assessments.
– Larger ISSUE with entire Cities Housing Quality, This needs to be raised to good standards across the city which will impact legal suitability Reviews.
– More Housing & Homelessness Legal Aid Firms Needed in Brighton and Hove. Issues with legal aid funding cuts in 2018.
– Recruited a head of public law position to do more legal challenges against councils like Brighton and Hove City Council, in Which Hannah Cited a No Recourse to Public Funds Challenge Lawstop won against Brighton and Hove City Council and changed the Law Nationally.
– So we’re seeing a rise in property guardianships and also subletting the issue with both of those is that when it comes to you being evicted. There’s very little protection that you have and the lack of affordable general needs housing stock in brighton and hove.
– Larger ISSUE with entire Cities Housing Quality, This needs to be raised to good standards across the city which will impact legal suitability Reviews.
– More Housing & Homelessness Legal Aid Firms Needed in Brighton and Hove. Issues with legal aid funding cuts in 2018.
– Recruited a head of public law position to do more legal challenges against councils like Brighton and Hove City Council, in Which Hannah Cited a No Recourse to Public Funds Challenge Lawstop won against Brighton and Hove City Council and changed the Law Nationally.
– So we’re seeing a rise in property guardianships and also subletting the issue with both of those is that when it comes to you being evicted. There’s very little protection that you have and the lack of affordable general needs housing stock in brighton and hove.
"Lawstop at the moment have very much been trying to challenge individual cases, so if you come to us and your homeless we will challenge that if you come to us and are not in suitable properties. We'll challenge that, but one of the things that we definitely need to start challenging is the policies, so we had one very successful case where we challenged Brighton and it actually changed the law across the whole country."
Help Available, At Present
ANDY WINTER - BHT SUSSEX
What actions are other areas taking?
Bob Blackman MP- Homelessness Reduction Act - Senior Speaker
What actions are other areas taking?
Cllr Matthew Brown Senior Fellow For The Promotion Of Community Wealth Building With The Democracy Collaborative & Leader Of Preston City Council.
KEY POINTS RAISED:
Cllr Matthew Brown is urging Brighton and Hove to adopt the Community Wealth Building approach, which aims to circulate wealth through communities and promote local ownership of the economy. He suggests that Brighton and Hove could bring all their big institutions together, such as the council, housing providers, universities, and hospitals, to ensure that the wealth that is already present in the area benefits local people, especially those under housing stress. He also suggests that Brighton and Hove could work towards reducing inequality and struggling elements through a strategic approach to managing their land assets, and by exploring alternative economic policies and successful models from other areas.
What practical actions can/must we take?
- There is a housing crisis and a shortage of social and genuinely affordable housing.
- There are too many luxury properties and not enough social housing being built.
- The phenomenon of “buy to leave” properties is contributing to the housing crisis, where homes are being left empty and not used.
- Short-term letting market through Airbnb is contributing to the housing crisis and properties are being used for commercial investment rather than for housing.
- The regulation of Airbnb needs to be addressed with measures such as straightforward licensing controls and total bans in some areas, as well as the creation of separate multiple use classes of property for residential homes.
What practical actions can/must we take?
Acorn is a Community Union of working-class people fighting for a better life. They have thousands of members all across the country and have won campaigns on public transport, community safety, defending public services, and campaigning on housing.
- The housing situation in Brighton is appalling, with illegal evictions, revenge evictions, fires, rats, insect infestations, assaults from landlords, and some of the worst housing conditions in the country. The council is completely insufficient, with pretty much no consequences for landlords to break the law in Brighton.
- Power is key to how Acorn organizes and all of their successes. Unless they have the power to force decision-makers (governments, councils, landlords) to give them what they want, they won’t get very far. Acorn makes demands and backs them up with action, including direct action against councils, physically resisting bailiffs when they’re trying to forcefully evict people from their homes, and organizing deselection campaigns against politicians who don’t keep their word.
- Despite working constructively with the council over two years, Councillor Gibson consistently refused to make any clear commitments on taking action. It’s only when they started making demands and backing up with action that they started to make progress and get policies changed through the council.
- The council leader, Phelim McCafferty, is currently refusing to meet with Acorn, saying he is too busy. If illegal evictions, dangerous conditions, assaults from landlords, and allegations made by councillors that staff are undermining democratic policy decisions aren’t a priority for this Council, then what is? Brighton Council, which is run by Green, has been one of the worst administrations that Acorn has experienced.
Read The Full Speech
What practical actions can/must we take?
Cllr David Gibson - Brighton and Hove City Council / Co-chair Housing Committee
Five achievements mentioned in the speech are:
- The council has doubled the rate of providing additional council homes than was previously being achieved.
- Council has expanded enforcement in the private rented sector (PRS).
- Council has commissioned a study to look at the evidence base for landlord licensing.
- The council has signed the Homeless Bill of Rights and the emergency accommodation charter.
- Council has brought emergency accommodation in-house.
Three things that David recommends we do from this speech are:
- The government needs to shell out grant money so that council housing can be built and let out at affordable rents, which saves money for the government in the long run.
- Serious campaigning and rent controls are needed to deal with the affordability problem in the private rented sector.
- The council needs to recruit more staff to deal with homelessness, despite anticipating austerity cuts next year.
Read The Full Speech
What practical actions can/must we take?
David Thomas - Lecturer / Housing Law / Homeless Bill of Rights - Coalition Legal Officer
Read The Full Speech
What practical actions can/must we take?
Audience Participation
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