Campaign will see 800 homes delivered for homeless Londoners

A collaborative campaign with major businesses will see 800 new homes built to house rough sleepers in London.  

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, announced £75m of funding for the development as he met Crisis and St Mungo’s staff in Newham, working on the Crisis at Christmas service.  

Business partners, such as IKEA, Asda and the Good Things Foundation, will also be involved with the programme, donating supplies to people when they move from Crisis at Christmas to long-term accommodation.  

IKEA has donated kitchen supplies and some home furnishings, like blankets and towels, while Asda has donated toiletries and food. The Good Things Foundation, Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone have also contributed sim cards and mobile phones.  

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: ‘Since becoming Mayor, I’ve made it a personal priority to tackle rough sleeping and we’ve helped a record 13,500 people off the streets through our support services as we work to build a fairer London for all. But the hard work doesn’t stop here and I’m pleased that City Hall has secured funding to deliver up to 800 homes for Londoners sleeping rough. 

‘On behalf of all Londoners, I also want to thank Crisis and St Mungo’s for their tireless efforts supporting some of the most vulnerable in our city.’  

The Crisis at Christmas service has been extended for a second time to ensure guests have an extra few weeks until mid-January to stay warm and get food. Last year 76% of people who left the extended service did not immediately return to the streets. 

The 800 new homes will be delivered alongside the Mayor’s Rough Sleeping Accommodation and Move On programmes which have already built more than 1,000 homes for the homeless.  

London has seen a 21% increase in homelessness in the past year, with 5,712 homeless people spotted in the capital, which has led Khan to urge the government to bring in housing reforms to aid the public with cost of living pressures.

He added: ‘We can’t do this alone, and to end rough sleeping in our capital, particularly amid the cost of living crisis, the Government must intervene to prevent the circumstances that lead to people sleeping rough before thousands more are forced to face a winter on the streets.’

Photo by Nathan Dumlao