A new report, authored by Heriot-Watt University, found that in England the highest levels of homelessness risks are experienced by people from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds.  

Black people are three and a half times as likely to experience statutory homelessness as White British people.  The report, conducted in partnership with Race on the Agenda and funded by Oak Foundation, found that experience of discrimination, harassment or abuse on the grounds of race or ethnicity in housing, or in other aspects of life, appears to be associated with elevated risks of homelessness.  

Amongst Black people with experience of homelessness, one third (32%) report discrimination from a social or private landlord.

Homelessness and Black and Minoritised Ethnic Communities in the UK: A Statistical Report on the State of the Nation is the first report in a three-year knowledge and capacity building programme. It aims to support a fundamental step change in the UK evidence base on homelessness amongst people from Black and minoritised ethnic communities.  

The research was delivered with input from race and equalities organisations, national housing and homelessness charities, and poverty experts. Its technical work used sources from the UK Data Service, Government Statistical services and ONS.

Professor Glen Bramley, Heriot-Watt University, said, "This report reveals the shocking extent of disparities in homelessness risks experienced between some ethnic minority communities and White people living in the UK today. What is particularly distressing is the apparent link between homelessness and race discrimination.  This needs further investigation, and we are committed to this ongoing work to better inform priorities, tools and levers for intervention. "

Click here to READ the full Report

The academic team, with input from the wider advisory expert group, will now deliver a more focussed exploration of the experiences of specific ethnic groups and the contrasts between London and other parts of the country.