A coalition of 23 homelessness charities and organisations, including St Mungo’s, Shelter and Centrepoint, has warned that services could close next year when government funding to combat rough sleeping ends.

The charities have written an open letter to the government warning their services are at risk when the Rough Sleeping Initiative (RSI) funding ends in March 2025.

The finding “has had a huge impact on meeting the demand of people facing homelessness and ensuring they get appropriate support”, the charities warn.

According to St Mungo’s around a third of its commissioned services are funded through the initiative, totalling around £17.6m.

A “funding cliff-edge for many homelessness services” will be created unless the money is guaranteed beyond next March, St Mungo’s warns.

“Without RSI funding to support this record number of people experiencing homelessness, services are at significant risk,” the charities warn.

“Many of these services are run in partnership with local authorities facing acute financial pressures, which will only ramp up without RSI support.”

The letter has been sent to ministers as latest government figures show that demand for homelessness charity services “has never been higher.

These show that 178,560 people are homeless, with a further 146,430 at risk of homelessness.

The figures show “the scale of homelessness and the challenge ahead for national and local government, as well as charities, in tackling it” said St Mungo’s chief executive Emma Haddad.

“Behind these statistics, there are people who our teams see every day. People who are worried about finding shelter for the night after months – or even years – sleeping rough. People who are worried about finding a stable home when time is running out on temporary accommodation arrangements.

“Without vital sources of funding like the Rough Sleeping Initiative, yet more people will experience the trauma of homelessness, and our collective aim of ending homelessness for good will be pushed even further away.”

The coalition is calling on the government to include a continuation of RSI funding in its Autumn Budget later this month.

“As we approach the Budget, leading voices in the homelessness and housing sectors are asking the Government to protect RSI funding so that homelessness services can continue, and no one faces a life of uncertainty without a home.”

Other signatories include Emmaus UK, New Horizon Youth Centre and YMCA England and Wales.

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