![](https://www.thepavement.org.uk/media/thePavement.png)
Established 2005 Registered Charity No. 1110656
Scottish Charity Register No. SC043760
DONATE
Please help us to help more homeless people by setting up a monthly direct debit.
the Pavement relies on donations and volunteering from individuals and companies...
MORE ON DONATING
RECENT TWEETS
More accusations of fixing the homeless figures...
A leading homeless charity has accused Westminster Council of "temporarily forcing" rough sleepers off the streets in time for a head count on 24th September.
Christian charity Housing Justice claims the council moved 137 people in time for September's count, which found an all-time low of 69 rough sleepers across the borough.
Charity volunteers carried out their own count - using the same system as the council - just two weeks before and found 206 people.
Housing Justice London coordinator Sally Leigh said: "We've spoken to dozens of homeless people who say they were either shunted into temporary hostels by council outreach teams or hassled by the police night after night in the run-up to the count, so they moved out of the area for a few days.
"Unfortunately, some people are unwilling to take up any offers of beds in hostels.
"Others are not eligible to access a hostel place because they have no benefits entitlements, or can't prove a sufficient local connection. Others don't wish to move out or be moved out of Westminster to a different location. And some don't wish to be found by official services of any kind.
"For these people, Housing Justice believes that the main outcome of stronger enforcement is simply to displace them to areas where homelessness services are less developed and where they are more visible, and therefore vulnerable, to local hostility.
"Such strong-arm tactics only temporarily drive down the numbers of rough sleepers on the streets of Westminster for the purposes of the count."
Despite this, Westminster Council insists homelessness is not being undercounted and highlights how it has helped 750 homeless people off the streets and into accommodation in the past year.
But last year the authority came under fire for cracking down on soup kitchens for "encouraging people to sleep rough" and for implementing the aggressive policy of "hot washing", which is similar to Operation Poncho in the City.
Operation Poncho - a programme run by the Met Police, the Corporation of London and homeless charity Broadway in the City of London - tries to remove people bedded down for the night by waking them up in the early hours and then pouring water over their piece of pavement, to prevent them going to sleep again.
Westminster Council denies the practice of hot washing, but a study published last year by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that it was employed as a measure to deal with problematic street culture.
Report co-author Sarah Johnsen added: "All hot washing did was disperse rough sleepers, and this can distance vulnerable people from services."
Both hot washing and Operation Poncho (in the City) have been criticised as being ruthless and inappropriate ways of dealing with rough sleepers, and shortly after being introduced in April, Operation Poncho was temporarily suspended following complaints by church groups and housing campaigners. But the police have recently confirmed that Operation Poncho has resumed, as both they and councils come under increasing pressure to meet government targets to have zero people sleeping rough by 2012.
Rev Simon Perry, of Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, said: "Operation Poncho is subhuman - waking people up and forcing them to accept your help."
Housing Justice said its tally was conducted in the exact same way as the council and has pledged to carry out another spot check within weeks. Ms Leigh added: "Before the council's count, many rough sleepers were moved and woken up by the police several times at night - we have lots of testimony about that - so they slept in alleyways, increasing their exposure to danger.
"We are also aware that the police changed shift patterns immediately after the Housing Justice count, in a push to encourage rough sleepers to engage with Westminster's outreach workers and building based services. We believe they also tried to persuade people who couldn't engage with services to leave the borough.
"Many frontline workers in homelessness as well as the police and others who are tasked with enforcement see the official street count as having become politically motivated, as a measure of the success (or otherwise) of central government homelessness policy.
"Housing Justice would like to see all street counts carried out independently, and led by voluntary organisations and churches so that the results are credible.
"However, we do wish to congratulate Westminster on the numbers of people they have housed and assisted through their range of services this year. We believe the standards of care offered by the borough through its various hostels and other facilities are good, and we would like to work with them to ensure that all those who are street homeless receive the help they need to rebuild their lives."
Before last month's count, the most recent official Westminster Council tally took place in June 2008 and found 111 people - more than a third higher than September's total.
Meanwhile, a headcount carried out by the Simon Community in April found there to be 241 people bedded down for the night in eight London boroughs. The charity is carrying out its next headcount on 30th October.
Housing Justice's headcount was carried out by more than 30 volunteers from Housing Justice, the Simon Community, Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, ASLAN, the Salvation Army, Finchley Churches Together Winter Shelter, CARIS Islington Churches Cold Weather Shelter, Open House Film Club and White Box Digital. They went out in pairs between midnight and 4.00am on the morning of 9th September.
More counts to come?
At time of going to press, rumours reached The Pavement, from a reliable source, that Westminster council are preparing for another street count despite having on just completed a major count on 24th September. It's suggested that it will take place in the first or second week of November. If you find yourself being counted, please let us know - address on page 3.
Editor
June – July 2024 : Reflections
CONTENTS
BACK ISSUES
- Issue 150 : June – July 2024 : Reflections
- Issue 149 : April – May 2024 : Compassion
- Issue 148 : February – March 2024 : The little things
- Issue 147 : December 2023 – January 2024 : Next steps
- Issue 146 : October 2023 – November 2023 : Kind acts
- Issue 145 : August 2023 – September 2023 : Mental health
- Issue 144 : June 2023 – July 2023 : Community
- Issue 143 : April 2023 - May 2023 : Hope springs
- Issue 142 : February 2023 - March 2023 : New Beginnings
- Issue 141 : December 2022 - January 2023 : Winter Homeless
- Issue 140 : October - November 2022 : Resolve
- Issue 139 : August - September 2022 : Creativity
- Issue 138 : June - July 2022 : Practical advice
- Issue 137 : April - May 2022 : Connection
- Issue 136 : February - March 2022 : RESPECT
- Issue 135 : Dec 2021 - Jan 2022 : OPPORTUNITY
- Issue 134 : September-October 2021 : Losses and gains
- Issue 133 : July-August 2021 : Know Your Rights
- Issue 132 : May-June 2021 : Access to Healthcare
- Issue 131 : Mar-Apr 2021 : SOLUTIONS
- Issue 130 : Jan-Feb 2021 : CHANGE
- Issue 129 : Nov-Dec 2020 : UNBELIEVABLE
- Issue 128 : Sep-Oct 2020 : COPING
- Issue 127 : Jul-Aug 2020 : HOPE
- Issue 126 : Health & Wellbeing in a Crisis
- Issue 125 : Mar-Apr 2020 : MOVING ON
- Issue 124 : Jan-Feb 2020 : STREET FOOD
- Issue 123 : Nov-Dec 2019 : HOSTELS
- Issue 122 : Sep 2019 : DEATH ON THE STREETS
- Issue 121 : July-Aug 2019 : INVISIBLE YOUTH
- Issue 120 : May-June 2019 : RECOVERY
- Issue 119 : Mar-Apr 2019 : WELLBEING
- Issue 118 : Jan-Feb 2019 : WORKING HOMELESS
- Issue 117 : Nov-Dec 2018 : HER STORY
- Issue 116 : Sept-Oct 2018 : TOILET TALK
- Issue 115 : July-Aug 2018 : HIDDEN HOMELESS
- Issue 114 : May-Jun 2018 : REBUILD YOUR LIFE
- Issue 113 : Mar–Apr 2018 : REMEMBRANCE
- Issue 112 : Jan-Feb 2018
- Issue 111 : Nov-Dec 2017
- Issue 110 : Sept-Oct 2017
- Issue 109 : July-Aug 2017
- Issue 108 : Apr-May 2017
- Issue 107 : Feb-Mar 2017
- Issue 106 : Dec 2016 - Jan 2017
- Issue 105 : Oct-Nov 2016
- Issue 104 : Aug-Sept 2016
- Issue 103 : May-June 2016
- Issue 102 : Mar-Apr 2016
- Issue 101 : Jan-Feb 2016
- Issue 100 : Nov-Dec 2015
- Issue 99 : Sept-Oct 2015
- Issue 98 : July-Aug 2015
- Issue 97 : May-Jun 2015
- Issue 96 : April 2015 [Mini Issue]
- Issue 95 : March 2015
- Issue 94 : February 2015
- Issue 93 : December 2014
- Issue 92 : November 2014
- Issue 91 : October 2014
- Issue 90 : September 2014
- Issue 89 : July 2014
- Issue 88 : June 2014
- Issue 87 : May 2014
- Issue 86 : April 2014
- Issue 85 : March 2014
- Issue 84 : February 2014
- Issue 83 : December 2013
- Issue 82 : November 2013
- Issue 81 : October 2013
- Issue 80 : September 2013
- Issue 79 : June 2013
- Issue 78 : 78
- Issue 77 : 77
- Issue 76 : 76
- Issue 75 : 75
- Issue 74 : 74
- Issue 73 : 73
- Issue 72 : 72
- Issue 71 : 71
- Issue 70 : 70
- Issue 69 : 69
- Issue 68 : 68
- Issue 67 : 67
- Issue 66 : 66
- Issue 65 : 65
- Issue 64 : 64
- Issue 63 : 63
- Issue 62 : 62
- Issue 61 : 61
- Issue 60 : 60
- Issue 59 : 59
- Issue 58 : 58
- Issue 57 : 57
- Issue 56 : 56
- Issue 56 : 56
- Issue 55 : 55
- Issue 54 : 54
- Issue 53 : 53
- Issue 52 : 52
- Issue 51 : 51
- Issue 50 : 50
- Issue 49 : 49
- Issue 48 : 48
- Issue 47 : 47
- Issue 46 : 46
- Issue 45 : 45
- Issue 44 : 44
- Issue 43 : 43
- Issue 42 : 42
- Issue 5 : 05
- Issue 4 : 04
- Issue 2 : 02
- Issue 1 : 01
- Issue 41 : 41
- Issue 40 : 40
- Issue 39 : 39
- Issue 38 : 38
- Issue 37 : 37
- Issue 36 : 36
- Issue 35 : 35
- Issue 34 : 34
- Issue 33 : 33
- Issue 10 : 10
- Issue 9 : 09
- Issue 6 : 06
- Issue 3 : 03
- Issue 32 : 32
- Issue 31 : 31
- Issue 30 : 30
- Issue 29 : 29
- Issue 11 : 11
- Issue 12 : 12
- Issue 13 : 13
- Issue 14 : 14
- Issue 15 : 15
- Issue 16 : 16
- Issue 17 : 17
- Issue 18 : 18
- Issue 19 : 19
- Issue 20 : 20
- Issue 21 : 21
- Issue 22 : 22
- Issue 23 : 23
- Issue 24 : 24
- Issue 25 : 25
- Issue 8 : 08
- Issue 7 : 07
- Issue 26 : 26
- Issue 27 : 27
- Issue 28 : 28
- Issue 1 : 01