Recent data reveals yet another huge rise in levels of rough sleeping in England and while the capital is world-leading in data about the problem of rough sleeping, often far less attention is given to the importance of mapping and understanding our existing interventions. Resources such as the London Housing Foundation (LHF) Atlas, which enable us to see a fuller picture, are especially critical as the Government determines how it will ‘turn the tide' on rough sleeping.

Rough sleeping is rising stubbornly in England. In February, the Government published the Street Counts and Estimates for 2024. The number of people estimated to be sleeping rough on a single night in autumn 2024 was 4,667 – a rise of 20% compared to the previous year and edging uncomfortably towards the peak across current data collection methods which was in 2017 (4,750 people). London accounts for 28% of those represented in the street counts and estimates (1,318 people).