We’ve all witnessed the unignorable, increasing struggle of London’s homeless. In fact, ‘struggle’ is putting it far too mildly. It’s become a crisis. Things have reached almost dystopic levels of bleakness – threadbare tents whipping in the rain outside Tottenham Court Road Station as shoppers hurry past with shopping bags from Swarovski and Selfridges.
It’s something that affects our community disproportionately and it’s much more common than you might think. You probably know someone who’s been homeless at some point in their lives. An estimated 24% of young homeless people identify as LGBT.
It’s a shocking statistic, something that should be making national headlines. But mainstream society don’t really seem to have registered it. Perhaps because it’s so huge and reprehensible that they don’t want to go anywhere near it, much less admit that they might be part of the problem.
Someone who IS going near it is The Outside Project. They’re an LGBTIQ+-focused charity who work in the homeless care sector; many of them have lived experience of homelessness, so are well equipped to deal with the nuanced issues that go along with it, from the physical and practical, to the sensitive and psychological.
“People in our community have specific needs when it comes to homelessness,” says Campaign Manager Harry Gay. “When they access mainstream services, there’s a lot of homophobia and transphobia. Especially with trans women. They go into mainstream services and get misgendered a lot, there’s violence…there are a lot of cases of rape in mainstream services as well. So they need a place where they can be safe.”
“It also means that rather than having to focus on their identity, they can just focus on being themselves and getting housing.”
While providing a safe space for trans women is certainly a top priority, Harry emphasizes that the need is felt across the whole LGBTIQ+ spectrum.
“The demographic constantly changes,” he says. “Some people are just down on their luck. They’ve been in a relationship for years, or someone’s died and they’ve lost their house.”
In Summer 2017, Harry and The Outside Project campaigned to fund a 12-bed tour bus, which would serve as a refuge for LGBTQ homeless people from the biting winter cold. Places were immediately snapped up, proving an inarguable need for the service.
Then in 2018, they teamed up with Stonewall Housing and, with financial support from London Mayor Sadiq Khan, put the wheels in motion for London’s first permanent LGBTIQ+ homeless shelter.
Now, they’re ensconced in the old Clerkenwell Fire Station, a zone 1 location a short walk from Angel Station. They’ve worked hard to convert it into a light, airy and welcoming space for people who need somewhere to stay. There’s a large community area with sofas, food and games consoles, as well as several newly repainted dorm rooms.
The Outside Project will also be using the space as a community centre, offering a safe, sober space for LGBTIQ+ people, with Stonewall providing housing and employment support.
Harry thinks that many of the UK’s – particularly London’s – issues with homelessness are down to how we define it.
“In London, it really can happen to anyone,” he says. “We want to change perceptions of what it means to be homeless. You don’t have to just be on the street. That’s not what classifies you as homeless.”
“There are so many people on the gay scene who are getting by on things like survival sex. I know drag queens who do shows and then go and sleep in saunas. These things happen because they haven’t got anywhere to live.”
“We need them to know that our service is open.”
The Outside Project have come a long way, but they still need your help. For more info and to donate, head to lgbtiqoutside.org
The homeless shelter is at 42-44 Roseberry Ave, EC1R 4RX. All LGBTIQ+ people in need of housing are welcome, subject to availability.
