This week, an archaic law was finally repealed: the Vagrancy Act of 1824.
Just over 200 years ago, in the aftermath of the Napoleonic War and in response to the industrial revolution, many soldiers, sailors, and economic migrants were drawn to the cities in the hopes of a fresh start.
The inevitable trauma carried by the ex-military, and the influx of people searching for work created a set of people without the capacity to secure housing or employment, rendering them homeless and in poverty.
The legislative response at the time was a blunt weapon, punitively criminalising the simple circumstances of having nowhere to go and no recourse to funds.
198 years later, in 2022, Parliament voted to scrap the Vagrancy Act, but with the caveat that new laws needed to be in place to deal with the most challenging aspects of the desperation of homelessness and poverty.
Leading us to the 29th of June, and the introduction of the Crime and Policing Act 2026, which includes several related and relevant changes to the criminal and societal responses to homelessness.
Today, the act of being without a home is no longer an arrestable offence, making an important shift in recognising homelessness as a housing and welfare crisis. This is one of the most humanising changes in legislation for a community of people who live almost constantly in fear, and a population whose lives are suffused with anxiety and depression.
Crucially, the new framework finally distinguishes between those who are destitute and those who exploit them. It ensures that simply seeking shelter on private land remains a civil matter, not a criminal one. Meanwhile the Act introduces targeted offences: criminalising the gang-led facilitation of begging and creating a standalone offence for ‘cuckooing’. This legally recognises our most vulnerable community members as victims in need of safeguarding, rather than criminals by default.
Our hope is that this parliamentary change will create a shift in society’s consciousness: individuals experiencing homelessness are victims of circumstance, not criminals by virtue of those circumstances.
200 years later, the homeless population remains, largely, a group of people who have suffered great trauma, or are leaving behind a life where their options are so limited that existing on the fringes of affluence and the hope that hard work and chance will improve things is preferable, regardless of the risks.
Over 30 years ago, the founders of KCAH recognised the injustice of the Vagrancy Act, saw the people experiencing homelessness as victims of circumstance, and quietly set about providing support, warmth, and shelter.
We are relieved that national lawmakers have finally caught up with what we already know. As Parliament looks at what to do next, the blueprint already exists right here in Kingston.
It requires listening. It means providing highly tailored, 1-2-1 support that addresses the specific trauma of the individual, practical intervention before a temporary crisis becomes permanent, and building trust through consistent, compassionate engagement.
The national legislative framework has finally shifted; now, Westminster’s focus must turn to the allocation of the £159 million supported housing fund to end homelessness, and replicating this kind of direct, human-led intervention.
