Definitions
of Homelessness
"When
you say homeless, I mean, what do you mean? Because I can
be living in a place that's not my home, I can have a roof
over my head. It's not my home, you know... Home is where
the heart is really. You've got to have some say in what happens
around you. You know, that's my definition of a home"
Quoted
from London Crisis report: 'They Think I Don't Exist, The
Hidden Nature of Rural Homelessness', Evans, A (1999)
The
national charity, Crisis, states:-
"We
need to redefine our understanding of homelessness. It is
clearly not just a physical condition but is an emotional
one and depends on how safe, secure and comfortable a person
feels in a place."
'They Think I Don't Exist, The Hidden Nature of Rural
Homelessness', London Crisis; Evans, A (1999)
Shelter
states:-
You
should be considered homeless if:
- you have
no home in the UK or anywhere else in the world
- you have
no home where you can live together with your immediate
family
- you can
only stay where you are on a very temporary basis
- you don't
have permission to live where you are
- you have
been locked out of home and you aren't allowed back
- you can't
live at home because of violence or threats of violence
which are likely to be carried out against you or someone
else in your household
- it isn't
reasonable for you to stay in your home for any reason
(for example, if your home is in very poor condition)
- you can't
afford to stay where you are you live in a vehicle or
boat and you have nowhere to put it.
Quoted from
www.shelter.org.uk
The
Housing Act 1996 states:-
(1) A person
is homeless if he has no accommodation available for his
occupation, in the United Kingdom or elsewhere, which he-
(a) is entitled to occupy by virtue of an interest in it
or by virtue of an order of a court,
(b) has an express or implied licence to occupy, or
(c) occupies as a residence by virtue of any enactment or
rule of law giving him the right to remain in occupation
or restricting the right of another person to recover possession.
(2) A person is also homeless if he has accommodation but-
(a) he cannot secure entry to it, or
(b) it consists of a moveable structure, vehicle or vessel
designed or adapted for human habitation and there is no
place where he is entitled or permitted both to place it
and to reside in it.
(3) A person
shall not be treated as having accommodation unless it is
accommodation which it would be reasonable for him to continue
to occupy.
(4) A person is threatened with homelessness if it is likely
that he will become homeless within 28 days.
Housing
Act 1996, Chapter 52, Part VII, Section 175
Doorway's
Definition of Homelessness
Based on the experience
of the pilot project and research by organisations such
as Crisis, Doorway will use the following definitions
of homelessness as its eligibility criteria:
Single people aged 16+
who are:
-
Literally
without a roof, or
- Threatened
with homelessness, or
- Without
accomodation which they have an exclusive right to occupy
(eg living in a B&B or hostel or staying with friends
- 'sofa-surfing'), or
- With a
secure tenancy, but with a disability, illness, lifestyle
or lack of basic skills to manage their affairs which
is likely to threaten their housing security.
