Homelessness in the UK: A Historical Overview

• The lecture covers the history of homelessness provision and regulation in the UK.
• The lecture discusses the part played by policy and law in allocating social housing, as well as the roles of the state and the private sector.
• The lecture examines whether current homelessness levels indicate a failure in housing policy and/or law.
• It looks into perceptions and policies towards people experiencing homelessness and asks whether these have changed throughout history.

Early History (pre-1800)

• Vagrancy laws were used to control and prevent vagrancy, with vagrants defined as idle people without visible means of support.
• The 7th century saw King Hlothaere passing laws to punish vagrants
• Criminal offences and severe punishments were used to deter vagrancy.
• Poor Laws, from the 16th century onwards, provided against starving for the deserving
• Settlement Laws controlled workers by prohibiting agricultural workers from moving to different areas.
• Poor relief was the first form of local welfare provision.
• Poor Laws demanded recipients wear the letter "P".
• In the 16th century, the state housed vagrants in bridewells, or Houses of Correction or Houses of Industry.
• By the 18th century, workhouses were in place where people worked 12 hours a day to earn their daily food, which shows a system of punishment stigmatizing people.

Victorian Times (1800s)

• Victorian attitudes valued hard work, thrift, and respectability.
• The Vagrancy Act 1824 aimed to suppress vagrancy and punish idle and disorderly persons, continuing the control of homeless itinerant people.
• The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 focused on the needs of the "stable deserving poor".
• Relief was mainly provided through workhouses, with conditions deliberately less eligible than the lowest-paid labourer's standard of living.
• Those capable of work had to work.
• Urbanization from the industrial revolution led to people moving to cities for factory jobs.
• Accommodation was often hastily and poorly built, causing the formation of slums
• Philanthropists and industrialists developed housing projects.

20th Century (Broad Picture)

• There was a large increase in owner occupation from 1900 to 2000, rising from about 10% to about 68%, transitioning from a nation of private renters to predominantly homeowners.
• Homelessness and social housing are viewed as parts of a larger picture.
• From the 1980s onwards, globalisation of finance gave a greater role to the private sector.
• There was a substantial reduction in Council-owned homes.
• Housebuilding became patchy and inconsistent.
• Homelessness and homelessness law saw growth from 1977.

20th Century (1900-1950)

• In 1918, 70% of the population lived in privately rented accommodation.
• Rent control was a result of riots during WWI
• The Housing & Planning Act 1919 (Addison Act) was the first big state initiative for large-scale housing provision.
• Subsidies went to local authorities and private builders.
• Councils built half a million homes between 1919 and 1933.
• Private builders built nearly half a million houses between 1919 and 1929.
• The National Assistance Act 1948 abolished hated workhouses, replacing poor laws.
• The Act put a duty on social services (county councils, not housing authorities) to provide residential accommodation for people in need of care and attention not otherwise available for them
• The Act also provided temporary accommodation for people in urgent need.

20th Century (1950s - 1970s)

• The private rented sector had poor conditions and notorious bad landlords.
• Race discrimination was common during this time.
• Local authorities built substantial housing, including prefabricated tower blocks and other poor-quality buildings.
• Around one third of the population lived in Council housing
• Many Council estates were rundown by the 1970s.
• Council housing was associated with a stigma.
• Home ownership grew.
• The National Assistance Act 1948 did not work well and was harshly applied.

Housing Stock/Supply (1945-2015)

• Following WWII, house-building was a priority, with 1 million new houses built between 1945-1955, largely by local authorities.
• By 1990, housebuilding by private companies fell to 150,000 per year.
• Council housing reduced due to the "Right to Buy" scheme and "stock transfers".
• Large-scale stock transfers were performed by LAs to housing associations.
• From 2012-2013, the total new homes built hit a new low since WW2, at 135,000.
• Prior to the 2015 election, the three main parties promised to build more homes.

20th Century (1980s and the Right to Buy)

• The Housing Act 1980 introduced the Right to Buy for Council homes from a conservative vision of "property-owning democracy."
• Successive governments didn't allow authorities to use Right to Buy sales money to build new homes.
• A massive loss of Council homes was a result of RTB.
• A projected net loss from 2021-2030 is anticipated as 3.61% (57,000).
• Council housing was viewed as a last resort in the 1980s.
• Visible rough sleeping grew.

20th Century (Emergence of Housing Associations)

• Many housing associations formed (some starting as housing co-ops) in the late 1960s and 1970s.
• The associations had an original ethos and objectives of supporting social housing
• The associations are a mixture of private and public finances
• There was increased commercialisation through mergers and acquisitions.
• Some associations will no longer build social housing as they're focused on building for sale, rent at market rates, or shared ownership.

Housing Associations (Minority Groups)

• There's a development of housing associations for black, ethnic minorities ,and other groups.
• The associations respond to discrimination in the private rented sector.
• The associations help with unmet needs of communities by statutory agencies.
• The associations help with the difficulties that accessing mortgages present.
• The associations have highly politicized individuals who empower communities.

1980s (Globalization, Privatisation, Home Ownership)

• Banks received less financial regulation during this time.
• There were new forms of financial trading, where the bundling of mortgages into bonds were sold to investors - international trade in mortgage-backed securities.
• Re-mortgaging became easier and a source of spending.
• House prices rose unprecedentedly.
• The "buy to let" market and 'small business' landlords grew.

Homelessness Law (The Housing (Homeless Persons) Act 1977)

• There was a failure of house building to keep up with demand, which fuelled concern regarding growing homelessness.
• The Act placed duties on Housing departments and gave rights for applicants.
• The Act created a national system, rather than local.
• Political compromises led to the intentional homelessness test
• There was little benefit to couples and single people not in priority need

Housing Act 1996

• There were concerns about Council housing systems.
• Many Council estates were "ghettoised", and people felt stuck there.
• Council accommodation allocation allegedly favoured homeless people.
• A Department of Environment consultation paper stigmatised single mothers and wanted to help couples starting a family.
• HA 1996 limited full housing duty to 2 years and amended allocation (removing reasonable preference for homeless applicants).

Further Statutory Provisions on Homelessness

• The Homelessness Act 2002 Local authorities were to take a strategic and partnership approach
• The Homelessness Act removed the 2 year limit on homelessness duty.
• The Homelessness (Priority Need for Accommodation) (England) Order 2002 specifies categories for ex-army, prison leavers, care leavers, and 16-17 year olds.
• The Localism Act 2011 allows LA to offer 12 months of private rented tenancy to discharge its 'full housing duty'.
• The Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 (amended the Housing Act 1996) includes relief and prevention duties.
• Relief duty may result in a 6-month private sector tenancy.

Localism Act 2011 (Allocation of Social Housing)

• Local authorities can designates categories of people who can or cannot qualify, within limits.
• Authorities must provide “reasonable preference" to those who are homeless or who are owed a duty, according to HA 1996.
• There are requirements for 'local residence', which could discriminate against people experiencing homelessness, including domestic abuse victims.
• Authorities are allowed to grants flexible (fixed term) tenancies, instead of 'tenancies for life'.

Erosion of Tenants' Security of Tenure

• Housing Act 1985 secured council tenancies for life with rent control.
• Housing Act 1996 introduced introductory tenancies (a trial tenancy for the first 12 months, leading to secure tenancy if not in breach).
• Localism Act 2011 allows local authorities to grant flexible (fixed term) tenancies.
• Housing & Planning Act 2016 mandated local authorities grant flexible tenancies, ending ‘tenancies for life', but rent control still applies.
• Rent Act 1977 provided strong protection from eviction and rent control in private rented sector tenancies.
• Housing Act 1988 introduced assured and assured shorthold tenancies (no new Rent Act tenancies) with reduced security and no rent control.
• Housing Act 1996 assumes that the tenancy is shorthold meaning no fault repossession by landlord and market rents.

21st Century (Homelessness Prevention and Rough Sleeping)

• 1990 – The Rough Sleepers Unit was created, although it was seen as 'an exercise in containment'.
• More than a Roof [DTLR 2002] were central government's proposals to increase supply of homes.
• The proposals looked to address homelessness and social exclusion, with increases use by private sector, including rent deposit schemes which helped tenants sustain tenancies and prevent homelessness.
• A series of policy papers were released from 2004 - 2007.
• Sustainable Communities: Homes for All (ODPM, January 2005)
• A target to halve the number of households living in temporary accommodation between 2005 & 2010 - emphasis was created.

Coalition Government (2010 to 2015)

• A new Ministerial working group on tackling homelessness was established.
• The government had a vision to end rough sleeping with No Second Night Out Nationwide 2011.
• The review of the costs of homelessness [DCLG, estimated £24,500 per person; total £1 billion.
• "Making every contact count" approach aimed to reduce homelessness costs.
• DCLG funding granted £160m per year for the Homelessness Prevention Scheme.
• The government sought to address complex needs by improving services for vulnerable homeless people [DCLG, March 2015].

Criticism of Prevention Measures

• Households in temporary accommodation halved from 2005-2010, but rose from 2011
• Crisis-Shopper exercise applying to local authorities for help was conducted.
• More Home Truths – learning lessons from complaints about the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017

Covid and Homelessness

• The government had remarkable success with the “Everyone in” initiative at the start of the first lockdown.
• The government enacted efforts to hold back evictions.
• There were new influxes of people onto streets.
• There was an increase of evictions once furlough ended and court restrictions lifted.

Issues to Consider

• Think about the causes of homelessness.
• Mismatches between aspirations and reality can exist
• Short termism does not meet the long view that housing requires.
• Structural inequalities increase disadvantage.
• There's a difference in treatment for those in priority need compared with non-priority need.
• There's heavy reliance on the private rented sector for local authorities to fulfil housing duties.