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Government scraps 200-year-old law making rough sleeping a criminal offence in England and Wales.
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The outdated Vagrancy Act 1824 will be axed for good, reflecting modern attitudes, increased financial support for the homeless and the government’s mission to get to its root causes.
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New legislation will target real crimes instead such as organised begging by gangs and trespassing—protecting communities without penalising vulnerable people.
After 200 years, rough sleeping will no longer be a crime as the Government confirms it will formally scrap the Vagrancy Act by Spring next year.
The Act was introduced in 1824 – towards the end of the Georgian era – to deal with rising homelessness which increased after the Napoleonic Wars and Industrial Revolution.
While use of the Act against rough sleeping has significantly declined over the years in line with modern attitudes and greater understanding around the causes of homelessness, it remains enforceable in law.
The Government will be repealing the Act to ensure rough sleeping is no longer a criminal offence, as it concentrates its efforts on getting to the root causes of homelessness, backed by major funding.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has boosted funding for homelessness services by an extra £233 million this financial year, bringing total investment for 2025-26 to nearly £1 billion. This ambitious support will prevent more families from entering temporary accommodation and tackle rough sleeping head-on.
The Deputy Prime Minister is also developing a new homelessness strategy with other government departments and mayors and councils who all play an important role in prevention and frontline support. This strategy will be published later this year.
The Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said
“We are drawing a line under nearly two centuries of injustice towards some of the most vulnerable in society, who deserve dignity and support.
“No one should ever be criminalised simply for sleeping rough and by scrapping this cruel and outdated law, we are making sure that can never happen again.”
The Minister for Homelessness Rushanara Ali said
“Today marks a historic shift in how we’re responding to the rough sleeping crisis, by repealing an archaic Act that is neither just nor fit for purpose.
“Scrapping the Vagrancy Act for good is another step forward in our mission to tackle homelessness in all its forms, by focusing our efforts on its root causes.”
Government amendments to the Home Office’s Crime and Policing Bill will focus on real crime and not rough sleeping, with no replacement of previous legislation that criminalised people for simply sleeping rough.
New targeted measures will ensure police have the powers they need to keep communities safe – filling the gap left over by removing previous powers.
This will include a new offence of facilitating begging for gain and an offence of trespassing with the intention of committing a crime, both of which were previously included under the 1824 Act.
Organised begging, which is often facilitated by criminal gangs, exploits vulnerable individuals, and can undermine the public’s sense of safety. This offence makes it unlawful for anyone to organise others to beg, like driving people to places for them to beg. It will allow the police to crack down on the organised crime gangs that exploit vulnerable people to obtain cash for illicit activity.
Through our Plan for Change and commitment to the Safe Streets Mission, this announcement demonstrates we are taking decisive action to ensure communities are protected and our town centres are no longer exposed to such harm.
ENDS
Chief Executive of Crisis Matt Downie said
“This is a landmark moment that will change lives and prevent thousands of people from being pushed into the shadows, away from safety.
“For 200 years the Vagrancy Act has meant that people who are homeless are treated as criminals and second class citizens. It has punished people for trying to stay safe and done nothing to address why people become homeless in the first place.
“Ending the use of the Vagrancy Act recognises a shameful history of persecuting people for poverty and destitution, something that figures like William Wilberforce and Winston Churchill warned against in their opposition to the Act.
“It is of great credit to the UK Government that they have shown such principled leadership in scrapping this pernicious Act. We hope this signals a completely different approach to helping people forced onto the streets and clears the way for a positive agenda that is about supporting people who desperately want to move on in life and fulfil their potential. We look forward to assisting the UK Government with their forthcoming homelessness strategy to do exactly that.”
St Mungo’s CEO Emma Haddad said
“The repeal of the Vagrancy Act, which criminalises rough sleeping, cannot come soon enough.
“Right now, we are supporting thousands of people who are rough sleeping; everyone facing this issue has their own heartbreaking story to tell of how they ended up on the streets – from complex mental and physical health issues to an increasingly unaffordable housing market.
“The answer is not to criminalise people for living on the streets but instead to focus on tackling the health, housing and wider societal issues that are causing homelessness in the first place.”
Notes to editors
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Repealing the Vagrancy Act was first announced in 2022 but it was not formally confirmed when it would be removed from law. This Government has now taken the decisive action to complete it within one year, by Spring 2026.
- Read more on MHCLG’s funding to tackle homelessness Largest ever cash boost to turn the tide on homelessness – GOV.UK
- Police forces across England and Wales use the powers in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 to effectively tackle antisocial behaviour in the context of begging and rough sleeping, for example where an individual may be harassing members of the public. The Home Office will be updating the statutory guidance to ensure it is clear to agencies how antisocial behaviour powers could be used in this context if an individual’s behaviour reaches that threshold. Government amendments to the Home Office’s Crime and Policing Bill will also be published shortly.
