19 Nov 2024: NACCCOM: Annual data briefing 2023-2024
Bridget Young, Director of NACCOM, said;
“Our research shows that thousands of people each year are needlessly pushed into destitution and homelessness as they go through the asylum and immigration system. No one should have to experience trauma, hardship and injustice simply because of their immigration status, but this is the reality for so many.
“Every member of our communities should be able to thrive, not just survive, but that’s impossible when you don’t have a safe or stable home, or enough to eat. Urgent change is needed to ensure that the asylum and immigration system doesn’t keep driving up levels of destitution and homelessness, and fuelling injustice in refugee and migrant communities.”
NACCOM’s latest Annual Survey data reveals that destitution and homelessness in migrant and refugee communities are on the rise in the UK, with thousands of people in the asylum and wider immigration system routinely experiencing trauma and hardship.
Our annual data briefing, Understanding destitution and homelessness in the asylum and immigration system, paints a comprehensive – and shocking – picture of the extent, impact and root causes of migrant destitution and homelessness in 2023/2024, and shines a spotlight on the increasing complexity of service provision in the sector, as voluntary organisations adapt to a turbulent policy landscape.
A hostile and failing asylum and immigration system, coupled with a chronic lack of social and affordable housing, and a general increase in demand for emergency homelessness assistance, are driving up levels of destitution and homelessness in migrant communities. NACCOM’s inspiring and dedicated frontline members continue to provide a vital safety net, but local capacity often can’t meet soaring demand, and unsustainable pressure is being placed on the voluntary sector – a bold programme of action is needed.
The briefing also lays out a set of recommendations for policy reform to ensure that the asylum and immigration system doesn’t actively drive up levels of destitution and homelessness, as it is currently doing.
Read more here: https://naccom.org.uk/launching-our-new-data-briefing-2024-understanding-destitution-and-homelessness-in-the-asylum-and-immigration-system/
Guardian: UK charity declares ‘refugee homelessness emergency’ as numbers hit record high
Naccom report says gaps in state support have led to more than 1,940 refugees having no accommodation
Homelessness among refugees has doubled in the last year to reach record levels as charities hand out tents and sleeping bags to those forced to live on the streets for the first time, according to research.
The No Accommodation Network (Naccom), an umbrella organisation for 140 frontline organisations working with asylum seekers, refugees and other migrants across the UK, has collated the data and shared it with the Guardian.
It reveals a 99% increase in refugee homelessness in the last 12 months, with 1,941 refugees finding themselves without accommodation. When including asylum seekers and other migrants, the number regarded as destitute or homeless rises to 4,146. A total of 850 people were recorded as sleeping rough, a 125% increase on last year’s figure.