Charity to buy housing to tackle 'catastrophic' homelessness

The homelessness charity Crisis is going to become a landlord for the first time in its 58-year history, saying the housing crisis in the UK has reached a “catastrophic scenario”.

- Jessica Murray

Matt Downie, the charity's chief executive, said it was preparing to launch a fundraising appeal to buy its own housing stock as it can longer get access to social housing to help homeless people.

“We don’t want to do this, but if nobody else is going to provide housing, we'll do it ourselves,” he said.

“It's something that would have been inconceivable for my predecessors 10, 30, 50 years ago because people would have expected both councils and housing associations to provide the stock needed for people on low incomes. It’s just no longer available.

“We wouldn’t be doing this unless the wheels had come off the homelessness and housing system.”

A study from Crisis, released today, reveals that almost 300,000 families and individuals across England are experiencing the worst forms of homelessness, including sleeping on the streets, in tents or squats, or stuck in unsuitable temporary accommodation such as B&Bs and hostels.