ROOF Blog

The problem of homeless people sleeping on Britain’s streets may have been transferred to hospitals, according to a new study. Although the government claims that the number of people sleeping rough has fallen by three-quarters since 1988, figures obtained from 173 hospital trusts under the Freedom of Information Act reveal mounting pressure on the NHS from the homeless. In England, a homeless person is admitted to hospital for problems related to drugs or alcohol every three hours. A total of 13,872 people with ‘no fixed abode’ were admitted to hospital over the last five years for drug or alcohol misuse. Total drug and alcohol related admissions of homeless people have risen by 117 per cent since 2004.

Liberty and Housing Justice are among the charities that have become so alarmed about the ways in which the human rights of rough sleepers are increasingly being threatened by the authorities that they have produced ‘The Rights Guide for Rough Sleepers’.

In the run-up to the London Olympics in 2012, which is also Mayor Boris Johnson’s deadline for ending rough sleeping in London, the number and the severity of enforcement measures against rough sleepers has been growing.

The guide will clearly set out the rights of homeless people so that they know what their legal position is.