Rough sleeping decriminalised after 200 years

For more than 200 years, the Vagrancy Act treated people experiencing homelessness as second-class citizens.  

Now, thanks to our campaigning, it has been consigned to the history books – where it belongs.  

What was the Vagrancy Act? 

The Vagrancy Act of 1824 was originally introduced to target homeless and wounded veterans of the Napoleonic wars, and made it a crime to sleep rough or beg in England and Wales. 

The archaic legislation labelled people forced to sleep on our streets as ‘rogues and vagabonds’ – wording that continued to be used until the present day.  

Sleeping rough is the most dangerous form of homelessness. It leaves people exposed to violence and serious health risks. This Act punished people for trying to stay safe and did nothing to address why people are pushed into homelessness in the first place. 

How did we achieve repeal? 

This was a win achieved by working together. 

Since 2018, we’ve worked alongside a coalition of charities, partners and politicians of all parties in England and Wales to make the case for repealing this outdated law. 

People with lived experience of homelessness shared their experiences in Parliament and highlighted the lasting impact of criminalisation. 

In Westminster and the Senedd, parliamentarians delivered impassioned speeches and pressured successive UK Governments. 

We worked with police forces on best practice for supporting people who were forced to sleep rough 

Thousands of you signed petitions, emailed your MP and even contacted peers in the House of Lords with a simple message: homelessness is not a crime. 

Thanks to these efforts, Parliament in Westminster voted to scrap the Act in 2022. 

And that should have been the end of the Vagrancy Act… but the law was not fully repealed. It remained in force and continued to be used to arrest people facing homelessness and destitution.  

In 2024, the previous UK Government, then attempted to pass even worse laws as part of its Criminal Justice Bill. But we faced them down. 

We didn’t stop fighting for what’s right. And now, the UK Government has listened. They have finally got rid of this cruel and outdated law.  

When we come together, we achieve change. 

Repealing the Vagrancy Act marks the end of a shameful chapter in British history of punishing people for poverty and destitution – something which figures like Winston Churchill and abolitionist William Wilberforce warned against in their opposition to the Act. 

The repeal of the Vagrancy Act sends a clear message: we refuse to accept injustices in our society. 

Together, we helped change a law that had harmed people for centuries. We proved that when we speak out together, change is possible. 

We’ll never stop standing up for what’s right. That’s why we’ll be here for people facing homelessness, for as long as it takes.