In these difficult times, it was very positive to see Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s early commitment to ending rough sleeping. But to achieve this - and to prevent homelessness altogether – the laws and policies that are making refugees one of the fastest growing groups of people facing homelessness need to change. This World Homeless Day (10 October), you can be part of that change.
We all have hopes and dreams for the future. The young people we support at Young Roots are desperate to move on with their lives. They want to become engineers, business people, charity workers and pilots. They want to feel part of the community where they live. And yet many newly-granted refugees face homelessness, and are unable to feel settled and look to the future.
One young person at Young Roots said:
After receiving my refugee status I became street homeless. Being street homeless made it so difficult for me to attend appointments, including my therapy sessions and the job centre appointments. I was sometimes sleeping with friends in different areas, sometimes I slept in parks or stations depending on the weather.
There are common-sense ways the government can prevent refugee homelessness:
- Give newly-granted refugees enough time to find somewhere to live. With just 42 days to leave asylum accommodation, newly-granted refugees face an impossible race against time: obtaining the ID and proof of address needed to open a bank account, securing an income to pay the rent, and finding somewhere to live before their asylum accommodation ends. A recent government pilot scheme proved that a move-on period of 56 days significantly reduced the risk of homelessness.
- Give young people enough housing allowance to cover rent. The government bans people from working while they’re waiting for their asylum decision, which means newly-granted refugees often need support to pay their rent while they look for a job. Currently, single young people receiving Universal Credit are only entitled to an amount called the Shared Accommodation Rate to cover housing costs. This amount is far less than the average rent of a room in a shared house. Private-rented accommodation is where most young refugees will need to find a new home – but the benefits rules are stopping them from doing this, and increasing the risk of homelessness.
This World Homeless Day (10 October), it’s essential that refugee homelessness is kept on the Prime Minister’s agenda.
That’s why we’re asking you to take two minutes to write to your MP – using our easy online form – asking them to raise the issue of refugee homelessness with Andy Burnham, calling for the reinstatement of the 56 day move-on period for newly-granted refugees; and for young refugees to receive enough housing allowance to actually be able to pay the rent.
Please let us know if you hear back from your MP – you can forward their reply to campaigns@youngroots.org.uk