Vagrancy Act finally repealed: rough sleeping no longer a crime

It has been announced that the Vagrancy Act of 1824 will finally be scrapped and rough sleeping in and of itself will no longer be a criminal offence in the UK. 

For such an old piece of legislation this may feel largely symbolic, but it will have a real impact, and of course symbols matter. 

Whether it was the soldiers returning from the Napoleonic wars in the early 19th century suffering what we would now call PTSD, which resulted in the passing of the act in the first place, or those whose lives have been turned upside down by the COVID-19 pandemic, people who are sleeping on the street should never be subject to action under a piece of cruel, discriminatory legislation like this. 

Homelessness and rough sleeping does not impact everyone in our community equally and many people who have had to survive on the streets at any time in the 198 years were in that position due to suffering terrible trauma, physical or mental health issues, bereavement and more. As recently as 2019, six people were prosecuted under this act for sleeping rough. 

The law effectively criminalised people as they simply tried to survive the worst times in their lives. 

This government promised that they would scrap this act, and they have now done so, and we say that is a good thing. The government have also set a target to end rough sleeping in the UK by 2024 which is the far more challenging and more ambitious task. 

Our winter shelter is full and in January alone, 11 more people were found to be street homeless in the area we serve. 

At Wycombe Homeless Connection we are committed to doing our part to make sure that no one ever has to sleep on the streets and we rely on the support of our community to do so.