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Hidden Homelessness: Britain’s Invisible City

2
“It was one mate’s floor one night, another mate’s sofa
the next night. There’s so much pressure not to let
people know how bad your situation is, but deep down,
you’re absolutely falling apart.”

3
Imagine if every single resident of a vibrant, flourishing city like Manchester
was displaced from their home. That’s approximately 380,000 people
without a home. Their plight would cause outrage and we’d want to do
all we could to help these people reclaim their lives.
But an invisible city of vulnerable and excluded people does exist in Britain today.
Crisis has estimated that there are 380,000 Hidden Homeless people trapped in
circumstances that leave them on the fringes of society. They live in hostels,
squats and bed and breakfast accommodation or stay with friends or family. Their
situation is not a temporary interlude – many are trapped in it for years.
This is a city that doesn’t appear on any map of Britain. Its population is found
spread across the country. Ignoring this problem comes with a heavy price.
Hidden Homelessness is costing Britain as much as £1.4* billion every year,
a sum equivalent in scale to the local government expenditure of a city the
size of Birmingham.
The people of this city are amongst the most vulnerable in Britain today, and the
problems they face are not just about being without a roof. Many are struggling
with problems such as unemployment, family breakdown, mental ill health and
substance abuse. With the right support they could overcome these, but all too
often they are left to cope alone.
It is time that Hidden Homelessness was recognised as a major social problem
facing Britain today. Providing people with a roof over their head is not a solution
on its own. It has to run alongside solutions that help people rebuild their
lives. But in order to provide solutions, we need a proper understanding of
the situation. We want politicians and policy-makers to carry out a census of
Hidden Homeless people.
* See www.crisis.org.uk/hidden for further information.
Britain’s invisible city

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“It became a juggling act of B&Bs, staying with my
parents – not telling them anything about my
situation. The stress of having to find somewhere
to live and find work was too much.”

5
Hidden Homelessness is the problem of single homeless people who
exist out of sight in hostels, bed and breakfast accommodation, squats
or with friends and family.
Those affected are amongst the most vulnerable people in our society,
homeless as a result of unemployment, relationship breakdown, mental ill
health, substance abuse or any combination of these factors. Many are
excluded from mainstream society, unable to participate in the communities
in which they live. All are determined to find a route out of homelessness
but such an existence is incredibly damaging and can erode confidence and
skills - making the journey back very difficult. They face many barriers that
can block the way back to an independent and fulfilling life.
“Homelessness broke me. Despite everything I had been
through and survived, it was being made homeless that got
to me in the end.”
Yet their dilemma is rarely recognised as a priority by policy makers. There
is no official count of the numbers of people affected and too little is known
of their needs. As a result they are often ignored.
In an era of official audits on everything from health and poverty to recycling
levels, it seems scandalous that there are no official figures for the number
of Hidden Homeless people living in Britain today.
Invisible people

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“If you are on the minimum wage they can say ‘cheerio,
he doesn’t need any help, he can get a flat.’”

Crisis has estimated that there are as many as 380,000*
Hidden Homeless people in Britain today. That is almost
equivalent to a population the size of Manchester, and one
that looks likely to grow, with current trends indicating that
it could reach the one million mark by 2020.
Society is becoming more fragmented. The number of single
households has increased three-fold since 1971, with fewer people
getting married and more people getting divorced. Problems such
as substance abuse, alcohol addiction and mental ill health are
common and, in some cases rising. Crisis research found that amongst
some Hidden Homeless populations, one in three had mental health
problems and one in four were struggling with a serious drug addiction.
These are the factors that combine to cause homelessness.
In Britain, local authorities are responsible for keeping a register of
the numbers of people who approach them as homeless. According
to their figures, homelessness is at its highest level since 1997. But
these figures do not tell the whole story as they only include those
who approach local authorities for help. Official figures ignore Hidden
Homeless people.
For every household recognised as homeless by a local authority, there
will be someone out there whose homelessness is hidden. Some
people are unaware of their entitlements, others are too vulnerable
to look for help and some simply slip through the net. Most of these
are single adults; all of them are Hidden Homeless people.
* The number of single homeless people is estimated to be in the hundreds of
thousands at any one time. Only a tiny proportion of these are rough sleepers.
Around a quarter are single people staying either in hostels, bed and breakfast
accommodation or facing imminent threat of eviction on the grounds of debt. The
remaiming three quarters form what are known as concealed households, residing
with friends or family, but without any explicit right to do so and in accommodation,
which is in some way unsatisfactory. See www.crisis.org.uk/hidden for
further information.
Projected rise in the number of
Hidden Homeless people
City populations in 2004
2002/03
2010
2020
1,000,000
650,000
380,000
Estimated Hidden Homeless
people in 2004: 380,000
Manchester: 422,300
Birmingham: 970,000
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Real numbers

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“ I wanted to work... I was ready for work.”

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Hidden Homelessness is costing Britain approximately £1.4 billion* a year,
a sum equivalent in scale to the local government expenditure of a city the
size of Birmingham.
Thousands of people are trapped by a combination of unemployment, rocketing
house prices and complex benefits systems. Forced to live transient lives in temporary
accommodation, they are prevented from playing their part in society.
Thousands of Hidden Homeless people are desperate to work but are unable to.
That means £450 million in lost earnings every year. Most are determined to get
back on their feet and gain control of their lives again but are prevented from doing
so by a lack of skills and training.
Yet it is apparent that there is a rich seam of untapped potential amongst Hidden
Homeless people. A Crisis survey of its Changing Lives Award recipients revealed a
diversity of skills and experience: with two in three of those questioned having worked
before becoming homeless; one in five having held managerial positions and one in
ten having been self-employed or ran their own businesses. However, the erosion
of skills and confidence makes the journey back to a career and training very difficult.
“I do really hate this feeling that I have of living on the nation’s taxes.”
Understanding the causes of Hidden Homelessness and enabling vulnerable people
to live independent and productive lives are the only ways to bring down this bill.
* See www.crisis.org.uk/hidden for further information.
Real costs
Cost category Cost element Broad annual scale of cost
Local authority £100 million
homelessness services
Temporary accommodation People in hostels £500 million
Housing benefit for those £100 million
in bed and breakfast
Health, police and £100 million
criminal justice services
Lost income to the individuals £450 million
Lack of paid work (plus lost taxes to the State)
Savings in out-of-work benefits £150 million
Total £1.4 billion

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Invisible lives
Hidden Homelessness can happen to anyone.
It has no respect for status, income or age
and affects as many as 380,000 people in
Britain today.
“I had a four bedroom house, a good job and
a very comfortable lifestyle. I found it very
difficult to cope with my marriage
breakdown; I simply couldn’t cope anymore.”
Crisis has built up a clear picture of the lives and
experiences of the most vulnerable who lead
chaotic and precarious lives. They are stuck in
hostels, squats, and temporary bed and breakfast
accommodation. Some spend months, sometimes
years moving between friends’ floors with nowhere
else to go.
Many Hidden Homeless people have left behind
careers, families, skills, and friendships and have
led independent, stable lives in the past. Problems
such as rising house prices combined with traumatic
events, including family breakdown, domestic
violence, addiction and mental health problems
often lead to their homelessness. Hidden
Homelessness means they lose their independent
lives and are set on a course away from normal
choices and options, rapidly diminishing their
chances of rebuilding their lives and regaining
stability and independence.
The hopes and potential of Hidden Homeless
people are thwarted daily by being shut out from
the opportunity to live at the heart of society.
They see ‘real life’ going on all around them; people
going to work, college, homes and social events
but they are distant observers, separated by a
series of barriers that keep them on the fringes.
“It’s like watching the rest of the world going
on around you but you are not part of it.
I am tired of living on the other side of
the glass.”
To hold down a job whilst living in a hostel or
squat is a feat of willpower and organisation -
very few manage to do it for long. Often they
lose their job when their employer finds out they
don’t have a home of their own, or the effort of
leading a ‘double life’ and disguising their
homelessness becomes too much of a strain.
“There’s huge stigma about it. If I had told
people I was homeless I don’t think the people
I was working with would look at me in the
same way.”

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Job-hunting is tough. Hostels, squats or temporary
bed and breakfast accommodation are not good
environments from which to be job-hunting or
preparing for interviews. And many employers
do not want to take on people who have no
permanent home, seeing them as unreliable and
a liability.
“I never put my full address on the cv. You
could suddenly see them switch off as soon
as people learnt where I lived.”
Being shut out of employment is not the only toll
Hidden Homelessness takes. It’s a debilitating
state, confidence and skills become severely
eroded and depression and isolation set in. Living
in a hostel or squat, sleeping on someone’s floor
or in temporary bed and breakfast accommodation
denies people privacy and a chance to feel safe
and secure.
“I’m not comfortable having visitors where
I am. You don’t want people you care about
to get caught up in anything that might
happen in the hostel.”
Hidden Homeless people often struggle to get
the help they need to get back on their feet and
build a more stable life. It’s common for them
to be without the support they need, out of
contact with their local authority and without the
most basic housing advice or information.
“All around you is the distress of life.
Nothing to make you smile. My
circumstances have brought me to the brink
of suicide.”
A high proportion of Hidden Homeless people
have more complex problems including mental
ill health and addiction. They are urgently in
need of specialist help including psychiatric
assessment and care, detox and rehabilitation
support. Many are not in touch with specialist
drug or mental health workers and few are even
registered with a GP.
The temporary arrangements of hostels and
friends’ floors that provide a stopgap in an
emergency, rapidly become permanent. And
although people are desperate to get paid work,
they are often caught in the benefits trap and
can’t earn enough to make ends meet.
With the right kind of support, we can help them
get back on their feet and gain control of
their futures.
“It’s like living in a glass box...
you’re entirely protected but also
entirely isolated”.

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“Now I am a productive member of society.
I pay my way. I’ve got a lovely home
and a great job.”

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A Hidden Homeless census
Homeless people are desperate to move on and can do so if we recognise
their dilemma and provide them with the services and support that
they need.
We need a new approach to homelessness that puts people at its centre and
recognises housing as only one part of the solution. We need to ensure that
homeless people are given help to overcome problems such as drug addiction
and mental ill health, afforded a real chance to reskill and sustain a job, and the
opportunity to reintegrate into mainstream society.
The first step however, is as simple as it is critical. We need a comprehensive audit
of the problem. We need a census of the Hidden Homeless population. There
are far more Hidden Homeless people than is officially recognised and the problem
has only been partially understood and only partly tackled. We need to know
how many Hidden Homeless people there are, who they are and what help and
support they need. Conducting a census of Hidden Homeless people will allow
us to understand the true nature of the problem that we face, the reality of the
interventions that we need to make, and the scale of resources that we need to
commit. Hidden Homelessness is a problem that can be solved.

Real people
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Yvonne, 29
“I’ve been hidden homeless for about two and
half years after I left a man who could be very
violent. I want to work, that’s the main thing
I want to do. I want to earn my living but you
get caught in a loop. The last job I had was
full time, paying what I thought was a pretty
good salary. Although I was earning enough
to be off benefits, I still wasn’t earning enough
to save for a deposit somewhere. I couldn’t
afford the deposit for private rent even on
a bed-sit.
I have put my life on hold, specially my love-
life because you can’t be in a meaningful
relationship with someone when you are
vulnerably housed. In practical terms, what
can you really bring to a relationship?
It’s like living in a glass box. Although whilst
you’re in that box you’re entirely protected,
you’re also entirely isolated. It’s like watching
the rest of the world going on around you,
and yet not being a part of it. I’m tired of
living on the other side of the glass.”
Thanks to Yvonne, Alistair, Danny and
Graham for telling their stories.

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Alistair, 26
“I’ve been on and off the streets for about eight years,
since coming out of prison. When I came out of prison
and went to the homeless hostel in Liverpool, I didn’t
smoke weed. When I left Liverpool, I smoked a lot. There
is a culture amongst a lot of homeless people, with a lot
of people drinking, smoking and doing drugs. It’s a hard
cycle to get out of.
“I don’t smoke anymore. I might smoke cigarettes maybe,
but not drugs. Most people don’t realise how easy it is
to become homeless. I worked as a chef. A second chef
actually, earning about £1,000 plus a month after tax.
Five months later I had no money, no job and was living
on the streets. OK, I had mental health issues but I think
the catering industry contributed to that. I’ve worked as
a barman on and off during the last eight years, as well
as a waiter and a chef. You’d always meet after work for
a drink with your work mates, then another drink, then
another drink. I haven’t touched a drop of booze for
about six months.
“To most people, homelessness is the beggar you see on
the street corner or the old fella begging for change. No.
There are lots of people sleeping on a friend’s floor or
staying with their family because they’ve got no home of
their own. Living in a hostel affects so many different
people from all walks of life. Most people just don’t
see this.”
Danny, 26
“I’ve been homeless here and there for about eight
years or so, mostly in hostels. I had a big falling out
with my family, and so began eight years of complete
frustration really.
“I had a good job. I was made homeless shortly after
starting it but somehow managed to hold on to it for
about three or four months. I don’t know how. I was
sleeping on one mate’s floor one night, sleeping on
someone else’s sofa another night. I always had to make
sure I got my shower before going into work because you
can’t really let the people you’re working with know what
your situation is. There is such a big stigma about it.
You just put on a brave face. But it was getting harder
and harder. Eventually the pressure got too much and I
ended up losing my job. To make matters even worse I
was on an HNC college course. It was going to lead up
to a diploma course. Because I was sofa-hopping far away
from the college, I couldn’t attend and I lost the course.
I was so, so gutted.
“I just want to be able to get out there and actually show
people what I can do. I just want to get out there and
make something of myself. This situation – it’s like a brick
wall. Just because I am homeless doesn’t mean that I am
lazy, beyond hope and not even worth looking at. I would
really, really like people to put the homeless label to one
side and actually look at me for who I am. Look at me
for the skills I can bring and what I can achieve.”
Graham, 57
“I left a responsible job to come back to London to look
after my elderly parents. They ended up in hospital within
a couple of months of each other. They then went into
nursing homes. The bills were astronomical and on their
deaths, the nursing home took me to court to have me
evicted so that my parents property could be sold to pay
the bills.
“It was impossible to get private rented accommodation,
as I was on benefits at the time. It is nowhere near enough
to cover the deposit you have to pay. So I ended up on
the streets. If you said to me two years ago that I’d be
here now sleeping on the streets of London, I would have
said you were mad.
“When I was working, I was running a department of
eight people spending £20 million a year.
I’m looking for work. The problem is that if you are honest
with people when applying for a job and they see ‘of no
fixed abode’ as your address the shutters come down and
they don’t want to know. They don’t even give you a
chance. I’ll wash up. I’ve applied for billboard holding.
All I dearly want is four walls, a bed, a mattress and a
lockable door so that when I go to bed I feel safe.”

Be part of The Crisis
Hidden Homelessness campaign
A highlight of the campaign will be a specially
constructed walk-in box where visitors will be
able to hear about Hidden Homelessness for
themselves, through a series of recorded voices
of Hidden Homeless people telling their stories.
To get involved in the campaign and take a virtual
tour of the Hidden Homeless box, please visit
www.crisis.org.uk/hidden
Crisis is the national charity for single homeless
people and works year-round to help vulnerable
and marginalised people get through the crisis of
homelessness, fulfill their potential and transform
their lives. We develop innovative services that help
homeless people rebuild their social and practical
skills, join the world of work and reintegrate
into society.
Crisis Skylight is an award-winning activity centre,
designed to re-skill and re-motivate single homeless
people by offering flexible first steps back into
learning and society – through a variety of non-
compulsory courses.
Crisis Changing Lives provides financial and
mentoring support to help people who are homeless
or settling into a new home realise their ambitions.
Urban Village is a new project currently being
developed. It aims to create an integrated
community where homeless people live alongside
low-paid key workers and receive support in a
thriving complex of around 400 flats.
Crisis SmartMove is a nationwide scheme that
gives homeless and vulnerably housed people
comprehensive housing advice and helps them
access accommodation in the private rented sector.
Crisis Open Christmas offers homeless and
vulnerably housed people a range of services
including medical treatment and housing advice,
but above all - companionship.
Crisis
66 Commercial Street
London E1 6LT
Tel: 0870 011 3335
Fax: 0870 011 3336
Email: hidden@crisis.org.uk
Website: www.crisis.org.uk
Crisis UK (trading as Crisis)
Charity no. 1082947. Company no. 4024938
© Crisis, 2004
Photography © Crisis - Michael Grieve
Designed and produced by Lawrence & Pierce, Nottingham
- supporting Crisis

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