Working in the homelessness sector as I do, my first response to Mary Wakefield’s Spectator article on rough sleeping was inevitably defensive. How dare they? Don’t they know we house and help thousands of people in London each year? Can’t they understand how complex it is and that they way things are presented is not always correct?
But after some time to reflect, I came to see that, yes, the system in which Broadway Homelessness and Support and I operate, can be imperfect. It is time-consuming, complex and sometimes hard to access. We are better at reaching people who are new to the streets than long-term rough sleepers like the mother and son described in the article (which is sort of logical considering the fact long-term rough sleepers often need so much more support and assistance). Our referral systems to hostels are both thorough and complex, but this is not to say making good assessments is wrong.
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