Black people in England are almost four times as likely to experience homelessness compared to their white counterparts, according to a major new study, the first in over 20 years to examine the link between homelessness and racism in the UK.
The findings come from a three-year research project conducted by Heriot-Watt University, which concluded that racial inequality remains deeply embedded within England’s housing system.
Even when controlling for income levels, geography, and home ownership rates, Black and minority ethnic communities remain significantly more vulnerable to housing instability.
Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick, lead author of the report, stated: “There are long-term forms of structural disadvantage, rooted in historic racism, which are impacting on risks of homelessness. But the data indicates present-day discrimination is also playing a role.” She added that the team heard numerous reports of landlords refusing to let properties to Black people, especially refugees, or enforcing harsher conditions than those imposed on white tenants.
The researchers analysed 750,000 homelessness records from 2019 to 2022. Their findings showed that only 10% of Black families in England’s statutory homelessness system secured social housing, compared to 24% of white families. Among migrant-headed households, just 11% were allocated a social home.
The analysis also found that overcrowding disproportionately affects Pakistani-Bangladeshi and Black households, who are respectively over seven and six times more likely to live in overcrowded conditions than white households.
Figures obtained through Freedom of Information requests by the housing charity Shelter revealed that 43% of Black-headed households in temporary accommodation had been there for more than two years, compared to 25% of white-headed households. Shockingly, 18% of Black households had remained in temporary housing for over five years, compared to just 8% of white households.
Mairi MacRae, director of campaigns and policy at Shelter, said: “The evidence is clear – devastatingly, Black people are more likely to become homeless and less likely to have a safe and secure home. Racial stereotyping, culturally insensitive communication and unjust treatment from housing officers, as well as excessive questioning around eligibility in the application process, leave Black people feeling unheard, neglected and dehumanised.”
Shelter’s accompanying report *My Colour Speaks Before Me* documents firsthand experiences of racial stereotyping, excessive scrutiny during housing applications, and unequal treatment. Respondents described feeling that their applications were subject to “an uneven burden of proof.”
One peer researcher for the report, Uchenna Eneke, 43, shared her story of spending 15 years in a one-bedroom flat with her children while bidding for social housing in East London. She recalled being forced to anglicise her name to “Gillian” just to get through to housing services.
“It makes you question everything – is it because I’m Black? Is it because I’m a woman? Is it because I’m a single mum?” she said. “Sometimes I had to change my name to an English name – I used to call myself Gillian – just to get through to speak to someone.” Her son developed chronic rhinitis from mould in the home. “I tried asking for help but nothing happened. You just keep to yourself, keep your head down, don’t get your kids taken off you. I ended up having a bit of a nervous breakdown.”
Now a volunteer with Shelter, she advocates for reform: “We need the laws to change because people are going crazy. People are losing their lives, losing their families, losing their jobs. Imagine someone being homeless but still having a job at the same time. That’s not normal.”
Professor Fitzpatrick stressed that the research aimed to “fill a longstanding gap in knowledge about race and homelessness in the UK,” particularly following the controversial 2021 Sewell report, which largely overlooked housing disparities.
Among their recommendations are calls for the proposed private rented sector landlord ombudsman to address discrimination and for housing services to reject ethnicity-blind approaches that ignore racial disparities.
“It’s really unacceptable that people who are already in a crisis situation are sometimes traumatised by their treatment at the hands of local authority homelessness officers that are there to assist them,” Fitzpatrick said. “If you’ve got people coming into a system with structural disadvantage, you have to be aware of that.”
