Out in the cold

Ending rough sleeping by 2012 is the government's ambitious target, set out in No-one left out, published in 2008. A paper from the Communities and Local Government Department provides guidance for local authorities that may not have traditionally experienced high numbers of people sleeping rough. There's also a self-assessment toolkit to help local authorities review existing arrangements. According to the Department "there are 464 people sleeping rough on the streets of England on any single night" (based on the total street count for 2009).