Campaign win

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has u-turned on plans to stop collecting data on the deaths of people experiencing homelessness, something we started 2024 campaigning against.

Ahead of official response to the consultation, the ONS told the Big Issue they would be continuing to collect the data and making iterative improvements to the methodology. Museum of Homelessness Strategic Lead for the Dying Homeless Project, Gill Taylor, responded yesterday to the Big Issue:

“We are pleased to hear that ONS have listened to feedback about their proposal to stop counting the deaths of people experiencing homelessness. Given that 1,313 people died in 2022, a figure that has risen every year since counting began, we were shocked to learn that they were considering this move.

Whilst we have been critical of the ONS methodology, it is crucial that central government and its departments take responsibility for counting those who die. We welcome the news that ONS plan to strengthen their approach to data collection – understanding the true scale of the issue is crucial to preventing future deaths.

We would be happy to speak to ONS researchers about our methodology, which is not based on estimates. If a grassroots museum can adopt a rigorous approach to capturing actual data, we are confident the ONS can too.

It is a privilege to host the Dying Homeless Project, the only UK-wide research and memorial project that counts those who die whilst homeless.

Museum of Homelessness is committed to taking action to prevent future deaths and would like to remind central government that counting is not enough by itself, preventing future deaths requires the rebuilding of our social infrastructure; social housing, a fully resourced national health service and accessible, welcoming public spaces for everyone.”

Read the full story here ONS U-turns on plan to stop publishing data on homeless deaths - The Big Issue