Homelessness

Summary

Use our step-by-step guides to work out if the council will class you as homeless, what your options are, and how to get the accommodation you are entitled to. You do not have to be living on the streets to be considered homeless. As well as sleeping rough, you might be classed as homeless if you are sofa-surfing, staying with a friend temporarily, staying in a hostel, or sleeping in your car. Even being in overcrowded housing may mean you meet the definition of homelessness. You are entitled to somewhere safe and suitable to live. But councils are under a lot of pressure and the process for getting help from them can be complicated. Getting free one-to-one advice about housing is hard. All advice services are extremely busy. We are here to help everyone who cannot get in at an advice service and cannot afford to pay for legal help. We give you the knowledge, confidence, and skills you need to deal with the issue yourself, or with the help of friends or family. If you need more help than you can get from our advice guides and self-help tools, we explain how to try to find advice.

Key information

• Use our step-by-step guides to work out if the council will class you as homeless, what your options are, and how to get the accommodation you are entitled to.
• You do not have to be living on the streets to be considered homeless. As well as sleeping rough, you might be classed as homeless if you are sofa-surfing, staying with a friend temporarily, staying in a hostel, or sleeping in your car. Even being in overcrowded housing may mean you meet the definition of homelessness.
• You are entitled to somewhere safe and suitable to live. But councils are under a lot of pressure and the process for getting help from them can be complicated.
• Information What to do if you are threatened with homelessness What to do and where to go for help if there is a risk of you losing your home in the next eight weeks. 
• Information What to do if you are homeless If you are sleeping rough, sofa surfing, or staying with someone temporarily, find out what the council must do to help you. 
• Information How to challenge the decision about your homelessness application Work out if you have the right to challenge what the council says about your homelessness problem, and how to do it. 
• Information What you need to know about emergency and temporary accommodation Emergency and temporary accommodation are different. Understand the differences, and your rights.  Chosen for you Emergency accommodation Emergency accommodation is short-term housing that you should be able to get if you are in urgent need. 
• Information How to best support people who are threatened with homelessness This information is for social prescribers, support workers, link workers and others supporting people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. 
• Getting free one-to-one advice about housing is hard. All advice services are extremely busy. We are here to help everyone who cannot get in at an advice service and cannot afford to pay for legal help.
• We give you the knowledge, confidence, and skills you need to deal with the issue yourself, or with the help of friends or family. If you need more help than you can get from our advice guides and self-help tools, we explain how to try to find advice.

Practical guidance

• Source: Homelessness

Related topics

More in this area

• Challenging a homeless decision
• Getting help from social services if you're homeless
• How to challenge the decision about your homelessness application
• If you’re being evicted by the council or housing association
• Check you have the ‘right to reside’ for housing